Pentagon Reports Billions of Dollars in Contractor Fraud (PART 2 )


The Pentagon paid hundreds of billions of dollars to defense contractors engaged in criminal or civil fraud -- in some cases paying the companies after they were convicted, according to a new Defense Department report.

At least 91 contractors holding contracts worth $270 billion were the subjects of civil fraud judgments -- and in some cases criminal fraud convictions as well, many of which resulted in fines, suspensions or debarments. Even so, Defense Department contracting officers still assigned $4.9 billion worth of work with these companies after the fraud was uncovered, the report said.

The contractors identified in the report include such blue-chip entities as Boeing, Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Pratt & Whitney, IBM and even the Yale medical school.

Under the pressure of two hot wars and a defense budget that has mushroomed to its current $700 billion size, the Pentagon has set up a Procurement Fraud Working Group. But in the six years the task force has been at work, fraud seems to have expanded even as the Pentagon's ability to detect it has increased.


The Pentagon said its own sloppy bookkeeping, missing records and inadequate training of acquisition officials were to blame for the mess. The Pentagon also acknowledged that the data in the report, which covers only 2007 through 2009, are probably incomplete because the Defense Department cannot accurately track individual contractors or how much is actually spent. And the report only tracks those fraud cases of over $1 million.

At least $682 million was paid in error to 30 companies that had been convicted of criminal fraud, according to the report, including $29.6 million to Herley Industries, an electronics manufacturer, and $66 million to AEY Inc., a military surplus and sporting goods firm.

The number of fraudulent contractors identified in the report is relatively small -- some 120 companies out of the 235,000 contractors that work for the Defense Department. But the dollar amounts are significant, a continuing drain on taxpayers and on the military's combat readiness.

Military contracting fraud, which first plagued Gen. George Washington during the Revolutionary War, has long bedeviled the American armed forces. Defense Secretary Robert Gates is only the latest of a long succession of defense chiefs to try to crack down on waste, fraud and abuse in the Pentagon's giant acquisition bureaucracy.

Under the pressure of two hot wars and a defense budget that has mushroomed to its current $700 billion size, the Pentagon has set up a Procurement Fraud Working Group. But in the six years the task force has been at work, fraud seems to have expanded even as the Pentagon's ability to detect it has increased.

With the data in the new report, the Pentagon acknowledged, came "recognition that additional guidance and training . . . is needed'' for its contracting officers.

The report was released by Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who had demanded a Pentagon accounting of fraud. "The sad truth is that virtually all of the major defense contractors in this country for years have been engaged in systemic fraudulent behavior, while receiving hundreds of billions of dollars of taxpayer money," he said in a statement.

"It is clear that DOD's current approach is not working and we need far more vigorous enforcement to protect taxpayers from massive fraud," Sanders said.

Views: 64

Comment

You need to be a member of 12160 Social Network to add comments!

Join 12160 Social Network

"Destroying the New World Order"

TOP CONTENT THIS WEEK

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE SITE!

mobile page

12160.info/m

12160 Administrators

 

Latest Activity

FREEDOMROX posted a video
12 hours ago
Burbia commented on tjdavis's blog post Track AIPAC
23 hours ago
rlionhearted_3 commented on Doc Vega's blog post Latest Details on Missile Exchanges Between Iran and Israel
"May get really ugly over there?"
yesterday
Doc Vega posted a blog post

Latest Details on Missile Exchanges Between Iran and Israel

Latest information about the air attacks between Israel and Iran as the US moves another carrier…See More
Thursday
tjdavis favorited Less Prone's video
Thursday
tjdavis posted a blog post
Thursday
cheeki kea replied to cheeki kea's discussion Tartaria
"Some interesting information has come to light ( from the renaissance period ) which explains that…"
Thursday
Sandy posted a video
Thursday
John Miller replied to MAC's discussion BREAKING! UFO whistleblowers drop BOMBSHELL on D.C. | Redacted with Natali and Clayton Morris
"Yes, the whole whistleblower situation is getting more intense, especially with all these bombshell…"
Wednesday
Doc Vega posted a blog post

Silent and Blue

Thought I'd lost myself todayThe meaning seemed so far awayThen you slowly faded into disarrayI…See More
Wednesday
Burbia posted a video

Disturbing Videos That Left Me Needing Answers!

#disturbing #video #strange #scary #scaryvideos #strangevideos This is a compilation of the most disturbing videos on the intern...
Wednesday
Erica Woodward is now a member of 12160 Social Network
Tuesday
rlionhearted_3 posted photos
Tuesday
Less Prone commented on rlionhearted_3's photo
Thumbnail

I’m thinking a great model for a bra ad?

"Gravitation, the ultimate enemy of breasts. A bra is recommended. "
Tuesday
Burbia's blog post was featured

The Noticing Continues

American woman says “I’ve had enough” of the white hate pushed on the populationQ“We're the only…See More
Tuesday
Less Prone favorited Burbia's blog post The Noticing Continues
Tuesday
FREEDOMROX's 2 blog posts were featured
Tuesday
Doc Vega's 4 blog posts were featured
Tuesday
Doc Vega commented on Doc Vega's blog post Now You Have a Shit Hole Regime Thanks to the Democrats!
"cheeki kea Thank you very much for the useful information! I will distribute this as much as…"
Monday
tjdavis posted videos
Monday

© 2025   Created by truth.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service

content and site copyright 12160.info 2007-2019 - all rights reserved. unless otherwise noted