2007年VOA标准英语-US Officers Charged With Fraud in Iraq Reconstr

（单词翻译）

By Michael Bowman
Washington
07 February 2007

Three U.S. military officers are being charged with steering¹ lucrative² Iraq reconstruction³ projects to a U.S. contractor⁴ in return for cash, vehicles and other kickbacks⁵. VOA's Michael Bowman reports, federal authorities announced the charges in Washington at a time when Congress is probing overall U.S. spending in Iraq since Saddam Hussein was toppled in 2003.

 
Paul McNulty (2006 photo)
Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty says the accused Army reserve officers used funds allocated⁶ for the former Coalition⁷ Provisional Authority in Iraq as "their own personal ATM [bank] machines" from late 2003 through 2005.

In a news conference, McNulty alleged⁹ that the officers conspired¹⁰ to award reconstruction projects worth millions of dollars to a single contractor, who, according to a federal indictment¹¹, rewarded his benefactors¹² with lavish¹³ gifts.

"More than $1 million [dollars] in cash, a Cadillac Escalade [luxury vehicle], a Lexus [luxury vehicle], a Porche [sports car], a Cessna airplane, real estate, a motorcycle, jewelry¹⁴, computers, business-class airline tickets, and even future employment," he said.

The contractor in question has already pled guilty to taking part in the scam.

In addition, authorities allege⁸ that large sums of cash were smuggled¹⁵ out of Iraq to pay for improvements to the U.S. home of one of the accused. Two American civilians¹⁶ are also named in the indictment.

The deputy attorney general stressed that all the accused are innocent until proven guilty in court. But he added that fraud cannot be tolerated.

"We cannot allow a mission as important as the reconstruction of Iraq to fall victim to fraud, corruption¹⁷, and theft," he said. "Thousands upon thousands of courageous¹⁸ and patriotic¹⁹ soldiers and civilians of the United States have devoted²⁰ themselves to the mission of creating a free and democratic society in Iraq."

 
Paul Bremer

The indictment comes at a time of heightened scrutiny²¹ of U.S. spending habits in Iraq. Tuesday, the former administrator²² of the Coalition Provisional Authority testified before a congressional committee that is probing how billions of dollars were disbursed²³ to support Iraqi government agencies.

Paul Bremer acknowledged that inadequate²⁴ safeguards were in place to keep track of the funds and ensure they were spent properly. But he insisted that rapid revenue disbursement²⁵ was essential at a critical time in the mission when Iraq's financial infrastructure²⁶ lay in ruins and the country's government agencies needed to pay their employees.