» Indictments, Convictions & Arrests Ms Sparky

DoD awards Agility $25M contract extension after suspension

August 30, 2010 — Ms Sparky

The USG is clearly Agility's cash and they appear to be milking it for all its worth.

First of all I find it interesting this award was posted on a Saturday. Was the DoD/DLA hoping no one would notice??

Here is the official FBO (FedBizOps.com) notice of Agility’s 6-month contract extension for Defense Distribution Depot Kuwait, Southwest Asia (DDKS). Although it clearly states the extension is for the sole purpose of transitioning to the new awardee (award scheduled for 31AUG), it still amazes me and others familiar with this situation, that nearly 11 months after their suspension Agility still has this contract. The extension value is estimated at $25M. Jean Howds a regular MsSparky.com reader who’s close to this issue says, “I think it’s suspicious and down right wrong the USG has moved so slowly to extricate themselves from Agility’s grasp!” My opinion and that of others is: the USG was banking on their strong arm tactics forcing Agility to pay a fine and/or settle the indictments. This would have allowed them to keep their contract. Evidently the USG was too optimistic and underestimated the arrogance of Tarek Sultan.

Posted in Agility/PWC/GCC, GOV. CONTRACTORS, Indictments, Convictions & Arrests. Tags: Agility, Agility/PWC/GCC, DDKS, Defense Logistics Agency, DLA, Tarek Sultan. 5 Comments »

The Struggle to Police Foreign Subcontractors in Iraq and Afghanistan

August 29, 2010 — Forseti

Billions at Stake, but U.S. Investigators Stymied by Murky Rules, Enforcement Obstacles

By Nick Schwellenbach – August 29, 2010
To win hearts and minds in Afghanistan and Iraq, military experts want U.S. companies to contract with local firms for a variety of tasks like trucking, feeding troops, and providing security. The U.S. government’s “Afghan First” and “Iraqi First” initiatives increasingly seek to rely on local contractors, often through subcontracts, in part to stimulate their local economies.

But a host of investigations underscore the perils in the murky world of subcontracting with foreign firms, and the difficulties in making sure taxpayer dollars are well spent. Among the current and recent probes by the Pentagon, congressional panels, and federal investigators:

Up to $300 million in subcontracts in Iraq and Kuwait were allegedly tainted by a Saudi-based subcontractor employee’s kickback scheme;
Subcontracted security forces in Afghanistan are suspected of bribing both Taliban and Afghan government officials;
U.S. money for a trash collection program in Iraq, administered by a bewildering array of subcontractors, has allegedly ended up in the pockets of insurgents; and

A former contractor employee alleged that Middle Eastern subcontractors, trying to sway the award of more subcontracts, were sneaking prostitutes into Baghdad’s Green Zone by abusing their security access cards.
Subcontracting is among the most challenging parts of the U.S. government’s widespread outsourcing of war-related tasks. It works like this: A government agency — most likely the Defense Department, State Department, or U.S. Agency for International Development — will award work to a “prime” contractor. That prime contractor, usually a large American company like Kellogg, Brown and Root (KBR) or DynCorp International, will often subcontract some or even a majority of its work to other companies, including foreign-owned firms. Those subcontractors sometimes then turn around and subcontract part of the work, and so on.

(Read the rest of the story here…)

Rogue jurors, indictments, plea deals etc.. – the news

August 29, 2010 — Forseti

Employee of Federal Contractor Charged with Disclosing National Defense Information to National News Reporter
August 27, 2010 – WASHINGTON – A federal grand jury in the District of Columbia has returned an indictment charging Stephen Jin-Woo Kim with unlawfully disclosing national defense information to a reporter for a national news organization and making false statements to the FBI.

The indictment, which was unsealed today, was announced by David S. Kris, Assistant Attorney General for the National Security Division; Ronald C. Machen Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia; and Shawn Henry, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office.

Kim, age 43, was an employee of a federal contractor who was on detail to the State Department at the time of the alleged disclosure. Kim made his initial appearance today in court in the District of Columbia. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison for the unlawful disclosure of national defense information and up to five years in prison for the making of false statements.

According to the indictment, in June 2009, Kim knowingly and willfully disclosed information contained in an intelligence report classified Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) to a reporter for a national news organization who was not entitled to receive it. The classified information related to the national defense, specifically, intelligence sources and methods and intelligence concerning the military capabilities and preparedness of a particular foreign nation. (Click HERE for article)

The Brooks trial: When jurors go rogue
Harnesslink -26-Aug-2010 – Andrew Cohen – It is by far the least surprising legal development of the year that there would be trouble inside the jury room in the corporate fraud trial of David H. Brooks, the titular head of the Perfect World Enterprises and Bulletproof Enterprises harness racing empire.

The white-collar case with the red-light tinge has been a circus, a freak show, and a mess since its inception. And I’m quite sure I’m not the only one who sees grand irony in the fact that Brooks’ jury might get hung up because one or more of its members may be cheating on the oath of service.

Brooks’ zany trial (involving two defendants, actually, allegations of hundreds of millions of dollars of fraud, and decades in prison as a potential sentence) was far too long. And long trials typically beget long deliberations. But it’s been three weeks or so and jurors should have been back with a verdict by now. Last week, the federal judge/zookeeper who presides over U.S. v. Brooks received a note from a juror who wrote that some colleague “sit there and read testimony that doesn’t relate to the charges we are discussing.” U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert gently reminded the panel that they all needed to stay focused upon deliberations.

(Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in GOV. CONTRACTORS, Indictments, Convictions & Arrests, Politics, Reports & Investigations. Tags: AEY Inc., Commission on Wartime Contracting, David H. Brooks, Derish Wolff, DHB Industries, Efraim Diveroli, FOB Shank, Louis Berger Group, Point Blank Solutions, Stephen Jin-Woo Kim, Stevan Nathan Ringo. No Comments »

Another KBR employee Daniel Freeman pleads guilty to taking bribes (updated)

August 26, 2010 — Ms Sparky

Daniel Freeman (photo courtesy of Facebook)

Updated: August 28, 2010 – The Federal Bureau of Investigation Department of Justice Press Release with more information.

Updated: August 27, 2010 – Bloomberg updated this article with KBR’s comments from Heather Browne verifying Daniel Freeman was in fact a former KBR employee. Click HERE for the updated version.

Note: Apparently Daniel Freeman did in fact work for KBR when he committed these crimes by accepting bribes from subcontractors. The below information was sent to me. It is reportedly from a KBR employee roster generated during the time he was committing his crimes. I redacted the date of birth. No matter what Heather Browne does or doesn’t say, which is bullshit either way, I’m convinced he worked for KBR. ~ Ms Sparky

Afghanistan Contractor’s Former Employee Pleads Guilty to Taking Bribes

By Patricia Hurtado – Aug 26, 2010 1:36 PM PT

A former employee of a U.S. contractor in Afghanistan pleaded guilty to accepting $200,000 in bribes in return for steering work to companies doing business with the U.S. military.

Daniel Freeman, 38, of Hempstead, New York, told a U.S. magistrate judge in Manhattan that from 2007 to 2009, he accepted the gratuities while working in Afghanistan for an unnamed U.S. military contractor. He also said he laundered the money he received by sending the cash back to the U.S. in concealed transactions.

“I accepted illegal cash payments from Afghan-owned subcontractors for awarding contracts,” Freeman told U.S. Magistrate James Cott in Manhattan. “I instructed and directed other people to bring the money back into the United States. They had no knowledge of how I obtained the money. I did it to conceal the way I received the money.”

Cott said Freeman could have faced as long as 25 years in prison if convicted after trial of two charges of money laundering and accepting an illegal gratuity. The magistrate said that according to a plea agreement between the defendant and the government, Freeman faces 51 to 63 months in prison when he is sentenced by U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon, who is presiding over the case.

“He’s accepted responsibility and he plans to live a law- abiding life,” John Meringolo, Freeman’s lawyer, said after today’s hearing. “He’s very sorry for what he’s done.”

Free on Bond

Freeman was allowed to remain free on a $150,000 personal- recognizance bond. Cott told him to return to court Nov. 18. No sentencing date was set.

While the contractor which Freeman worked for wasn’t named in court or in court papers, two people with knowledge of the case who weren’t authorized to speak on the record said Freeman worked for KBR Inc., the U.S. military contractor.

The company, the U.S. Army’s largest contractor in Iraq, provides services such as housing, meals, laundry, showers, water purification and bathroom cleaning.

Heather Browne, a spokeswoman for Houston-based KBR, didn’t immediately reply to a voice-mail message left at her office seeking comment. Another person at KBR, who wouldn’t give her name, said the company was preparing a statement.

The case is U.S. v. Freeman, 10-CR-00766, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan). Click HERE for the original article)

Posted in GOV. CONTRACTORS, Indictments, Convictions & Arrests, KBR Contract, LOGCAP III - KBR, Reports & Investigations. Tags: Daniel Freeman, James Cott, John Meringolo, KBR Convictions. 21 Comments »

Karzai stands firm, Abu Dhabi gets a Prince and other news

August 22, 2010 — Forseti

Karzai Stands Firm on Disbanding Private Security
Afghan President Says Stoning of Couple Was Afghan Government ‘Failure’
JOSHUA MILLER – August 22, 2010— Hamid Karzai, the president of Afghanistan, pledged to disband private security firms in his country within four months in an exclusive interview on “This Week.” Karzai insisted having those companies operate in Afghanistan undermined the country’s security forces and were a source of corruption, thievery and harassment. He also alleged that some private security firms engaged in terrorist activity.

In an interview with anchor Christiane Amanpour, Karzai said the quick deadline for their disbandment was necessary. “The more we wait, the more we lose,” he said from Kabul.

He insisted the companies were “running a parallel security structure to the Afghan government.”

“One of the reasons that I want them disbanded and removed by four months from now is exactly because that their presence is preventing the growth and the development of the Afghan Security Forces, especially the police force because 40,000, 50,000 people are given more salaries than the Afghan police,” he said. (Click HERE for article)

Lawyer Suing Blackwater Founder Erik Prince Chases Him to Abu Dhabi
Ryan J. Reilly – August 20, 2010 - A lawyer representing former Blackwater employees who accuse company founder Erik Prince of defrauding the government will head to Abu Dhabi this weekend to depose the head of the controversial contractor.

(Read the rest of the story here…)