Prosecuting Defense Contractor Fraud
As the United States works to protect its interests at home and abroad, the budget for defense spending remains high. However, a substantial portion of the budget goes to pay contractors for providing the armed forces with necessary goods and services. By 2008, defense contracting alone made up almost $400 billion of the national budget. While the government continues to heavily rely on contractors, prosecution of fraudulent contractor claims has notably declined.
For more information concerning your rights as a whistleblower, contact the qui tam attorneys of Tycko & Zavareei, LLP, by calling 202-973-0900 today.
Tracking Defense Contractor Fraud
Since the early 1990s, defense contractor fraud prosecution has steadily fallen to the remarkably low current numbers. However, with President George W. Bush’s increase of arms spending to properly supply troops first in Afghanistan and then in Iraq, money spent on contractors increased. Overall, prosecution of fraudulent claims has dropped significantly. Consider some of the following numbers regarding this lack of claims:
- The FBI referred 213 claims to the Department of Justice in 2001
- The FBI referred 86 claims to the Department of Justice in 2008
- Between 2000 and 2008, the FBI referrals dropped roughly 55 percent
If nothing else, these numbers illustrate the sizeable decrease in federal workers attending to defense contractor fraud. Between 1995 and 2005, despite the large increase in contractor spending, the number of defense criminal investigative service special agents dropped from 385 to 324, hitting a low of 313 agents in 2003.
Contact Us
While the federal government’s own oversight may have dropped over the past decade, there are still means under the False Claims Act for whistleblowers to bring their information forward. If you have information about fraudulent transactions involving a government contractor, contact the qui tam lawyers of Tycko & Zavareei, LLP, at 202-973-0900 today.
