VZCZCXRO6245
PP RUEHBC RUEHDA RUEHDE RUEHDH RUEHIHL RUEHKUK
DE RUEHGB #2927/01 3061423
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 021423Z NOV 09
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5321
INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/FBI WASHINGTON DC
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 002927
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
JUSTICE FOR JJONES, ANORMAN, TBARTLETT, BSWARTZ
STATE FOR INL/I, NEA/I
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV SOCI IZ KCRM KJUS
SUBJECT: ICCTF COMBATS CONTRACT FRAUD AND CORRUPTION IN
IRAQ RECONSTRUCTION EFFORT
1. (SBU) SUMMARY: To address corruption and fraud that
pervaded the government procurement process during the
initial stages of the USG's Iraq reconstruction effort, DOJ
created the International Contract Corruption Task Force
(ICCTF) in March 2006. The ICCTF is a joint law enforcement
task force comprised of law enforcement agents from DOJ, DOS,
and DOD that seeks to detect, investigate and dismantle
corruption and contract fraud resulting from U.S. Overseas
Contingency Operations, including in Afghanistan, Iraq and
Kuwait. In FY 2009, ICCTF joint investigations in Iraq led
to nine U.S. indictments and facilitated the opening of
several cases by Iraqi authorities through the Major Crimes
Task Force (MCTF), a joint US-Iraqi team that investigates
high-profile and sensitive cases for the GOI. END SUMMARY.
2. (SBU) The ICCTF has personnel based at several sites in
Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan where the US has engaged private
contractors to develop and deliver services to the USG on a
massive scale. The ICCTF,s mission is to integrate the full
spectrum of investigative, intelligence, audit and
prosecutorial resources to combat contract fraud and public
corruption related to USG spending, with an emphasis on
Southwest Asia Operations, and to enhance operational
effectiveness among US law enforcement entities and with GOI
partners. Located in four Iraq sites (International Zone,
Balad Airbase, Al-Asad Airbase and Victory Base Complex), the
ICCTF is comprised of 22 agents from the FBI, Defense
Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), SIGIR, State OIG,
USAID OIG, U.S. Army Criminal Investigative Command (CID),
Air Force Office of Special Investigations (OSI), and Naval
Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS). As corruption and
fraud schemes often cross international boundaries, the ICCTF
has positioned 46 agents overall in the Southwest Asia region
(Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait) to investigate cases of
contract fraud and public corruption in support of U.S.
Overseas Contingency Operations.
3. (SBU) In FY 2009, the ICCTF maintained 109 open
investigations in Iraq, obtained 9 indictments/informations,
and secured 8 convictions in U.S. Federal Court. The task
force has three case categories: public corruption (bribery,
kickbacks and conflicts of interest); procurement fraud
(false claims and statements, and/or
undelivered/defective/counterfeit products); and theft and
diversion (large scale theft and diversion of assets). ICCTF
investigations have led to arrest and indictment in U.S.
Federal Court of U.S. civilian and military contracting
officers who have used their positions and responsibilities
to defraud the USG of funds or assets or to solicit bribes
from Iraqi companies in exchange for award of contracts.
4. (SBU) One case developed by the ICCTF was the
investigation in United States vs. William Dubois, et. al.
The case involved the theft of nearly USD 40 million in
diesel and aviation fuel from a DOD facility in Baghdad,
Iraq. Using fraudulent documents and identification cards,
the subjects gained access to a U.S. military base to steal
the fuel. The fuel was later sold on the black market.
These thefts could lead to an inadequate fuel supply for
military operations at a time of emergency should fuel not be
available when needed. Dubois was sentenced in August 2009
to three years in prison for his role in the fuel theft
Qto three years in prison for his role in the fuel theft
scheme. His co-conspirators have been convicted in the U.S.
Federal Court for the Eastern District of Virginia and are
awaiting sentencing.
5. (SBU) In furtherance of the goals of Section VIII of the
US-Iraq Strategic Framework Agreement (SFA), when ICCTF
investigations of fraud and corruption involve Iraqi
nationals, information is shared with the GOI,s Ministry of
Interior (MOI) in order to facilitate an investigation by
Iraqi authorities with assistance from US law enforcement
personnel. In February 2009, the ICCTF uncovered a fraud
scheme involving a non-governmental agency falsifying
contracts in order to steal the funding for the projects.
The ICCTF shared this information with the MCTF, which opened
an investigation and obtained 11 arrest warrants for Iraqi
nationals alleged to have participated in the scheme. (NOTE:
The MCTF is a joint task force comprised of MOI investigators
and U.S. federal law enforcement agents, under the leadership
of the FBI. END NOTE).
6. (SBU) COMMENT: The ICCTF is both an important element of
the US federal law enforcement effort in Iraq as well as an
example to GOI counterparts and partners that the U.S.
BAGHDAD 00002927 002 OF 002
the walk8 when it comes to investigating and
prosecuting public corruption and fraud. The engagement by
the ICCTF with Iraqi investigators through the MCTF is
illustrative of the important relationships being established
by USG and GOI law enforcement which will benefit future
investigative cooperation, in accordance with the principles
of law enforcement and judicial cooperation outlined in
Section VIII of the SFA. END COMMENT
HILL