Waxman To Expand Blackwater Probe

House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.) sent letters to several top officials on Friday seeking additional information on the activities of Blackwater USA, a private security firm operating in Iraq.

Seeking further information on no-bid contracts and several incidents involving their personnel in Iraq, Waxman sent letters to Blackwater CEO Erik Prince, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Prince appeared before Waxman’s committee earlier this month.

The company has been in hot water after being linked to the shooting death of 17 Iraqi citizens last month, which prompted Iraqi leaders to call for the group’s expulsion from the country.

Blackwater and two other firms currently share a $571 million annual contract to protect diplomats and other top officials primarily in Iraq, Afghanistan and Israel.