Intel Allegedly Falsified to Justify Weapons Purchases
A former federal employee who says intelligence data was deliberately falsified over several years in order to justify the purchase of certain U.S. military weapons systems, will be questioned by the lead investigator in the bribery and corruption case that sent California Republican Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham to prison, Cybercast News Service has learned.
At NGIC, Cruse said he discovered that data he provided for classified threat assessment databases was being deliberately altered, both quantitatively and qualitatively, to exaggerate certain threats.
The National Ground Intelligence Center (NGIC), located in Charlottesville, Va., provides detailed intelligence on foreign ground force capabilities to war fighters, senior planners and decision makers.
An officer allegedly told Cruse he had been assigned to alter the data. The databases being altered included the Country Force Assessment (COFA) database and the National Futures Database. When Cruse brought the matter to the attention of senior NGIC officials, Cruse said he was told the changes were necessary to justify increased funding for specific weapons systems the U.S. Army wanted.
Cruse said superiors in the U.S. Army pressured him to go along in order to help continue funding and justify the billion-dollar Comanche helicopter project and Crusader mobile artillery weapons systems.
Cruse said he acted to stop the intelligence fraud by complying with federal requirements to report such activity. Between 1996 and June 2001 he lodged formal complaints alleging criminal fraud, waste and abuse of authority by colleagues and superiors at the U.S. Army's National Ground Intelligence Center.
During the last three years of this period, Cruse said there were "numerous meetings between myself and other analysts and managers at NGIC where plagiarism, fraudulent databases, and other potential ethical and legal lapses were the topic."
He spoke with management, wrote letters, and made phone calls. He requested the "intervention" of the NGIC commander and the U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM) inspector general, citing alleged conflicts of interest and the withholding of evidence. Both declined to get involved, according to Cruse.
Cruse, former NGIC analyst Stephen R. Jenkins and other employees had also complained that illegal wiretapping and surveillance were being used to retaliate against employees. Cruse met with FBI Special Agent John Zero to discuss the alleged wiretapping and other allegations.
The wiretapping allegation was unsubstantiated, according to the Army inspector general, who noted NGIC Commander Col. Bowers, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and others had thoroughly investigated the issue and found nothing.
A recent Freedom of Information request filed by Jenkins, however, returned a heavily redacted Army document, which states that the FBI did find an illegal wiretap on the fourth floor of NGIC following the complaint, but declined to investigate further.
Once a top-rated intelligence analyst, Cruse's performance evaluation plummeted to the lowest possible ranking in 2000. Cruse said the alleged retaliation included petty complaints, trumped up charges and finally, a coerced mental health examination.
Cruse was sent to Dr. Robert S. Brown, Sr., clinical professor of psychiatric medicine at the University of Virginia. Brown concluded that Cruse had a "personality disorder, not otherwise specified with paranoid personality, antisocial personality and borderline personality traits."
The psychiatrist's findings were strongly contested by Dr. Edwin N. Carter, a clinical psychologist, who on May 22, 2002, evaluated Cruse at his request, and reported he showed "no signs of any sort of personality disorder despite the fact that there are clear perfectionist tendencies."
Because Cruse was found to have a "personality disorder," his Top Secret/Sensitive Information (TS/SI) security clearance was suspended, clearing the way for his firing.
"By surfacing the problems, I became the pariah," Cruse said.
Cruse, a single father of two, now works in the plumbing department at a local Lowe's hardware store in Charlottesville, Va.
At NGIC, Cruse said he discovered that data he provided for classified threat assessment databases was being deliberately altered, both quantitatively and qualitatively, to exaggerate certain threats.
The National Ground Intelligence Center (NGIC), located in Charlottesville, Va., provides detailed intelligence on foreign ground force capabilities to war fighters, senior planners and decision makers.
An officer allegedly told Cruse he had been assigned to alter the data. The databases being altered included the Country Force Assessment (COFA) database and the National Futures Database. When Cruse brought the matter to the attention of senior NGIC officials, Cruse said he was told the changes were necessary to justify increased funding for specific weapons systems the U.S. Army wanted.
Cruse said superiors in the U.S. Army pressured him to go along in order to help continue funding and justify the billion-dollar Comanche helicopter project and Crusader mobile artillery weapons systems.
Cruse said he acted to stop the intelligence fraud by complying with federal requirements to report such activity. Between 1996 and June 2001 he lodged formal complaints alleging criminal fraud, waste and abuse of authority by colleagues and superiors at the U.S. Army's National Ground Intelligence Center.
During the last three years of this period, Cruse said there were "numerous meetings between myself and other analysts and managers at NGIC where plagiarism, fraudulent databases, and other potential ethical and legal lapses were the topic."
He spoke with management, wrote letters, and made phone calls. He requested the "intervention" of the NGIC commander and the U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM) inspector general, citing alleged conflicts of interest and the withholding of evidence. Both declined to get involved, according to Cruse.
Cruse, former NGIC analyst Stephen R. Jenkins and other employees had also complained that illegal wiretapping and surveillance were being used to retaliate against employees. Cruse met with FBI Special Agent John Zero to discuss the alleged wiretapping and other allegations.
The wiretapping allegation was unsubstantiated, according to the Army inspector general, who noted NGIC Commander Col. Bowers, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and others had thoroughly investigated the issue and found nothing.
A recent Freedom of Information request filed by Jenkins, however, returned a heavily redacted Army document, which states that the FBI did find an illegal wiretap on the fourth floor of NGIC following the complaint, but declined to investigate further.
Once a top-rated intelligence analyst, Cruse's performance evaluation plummeted to the lowest possible ranking in 2000. Cruse said the alleged retaliation included petty complaints, trumped up charges and finally, a coerced mental health examination.
Cruse was sent to Dr. Robert S. Brown, Sr., clinical professor of psychiatric medicine at the University of Virginia. Brown concluded that Cruse had a "personality disorder, not otherwise specified with paranoid personality, antisocial personality and borderline personality traits."
The psychiatrist's findings were strongly contested by Dr. Edwin N. Carter, a clinical psychologist, who on May 22, 2002, evaluated Cruse at his request, and reported he showed "no signs of any sort of personality disorder despite the fact that there are clear perfectionist tendencies."
Because Cruse was found to have a "personality disorder," his Top Secret/Sensitive Information (TS/SI) security clearance was suspended, clearing the way for his firing.
"By surfacing the problems, I became the pariah," Cruse said.
Cruse, a single father of two, now works in the plumbing department at a local Lowe's hardware store in Charlottesville, Va.
posted by Flackrum | 08:01
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