Sen. David Vitter (La.), the top Republican on the Environment and Public Works Committee, called the alleged scheme a “massive fraud” and has demanded additional investigation by the inspector general to determine whether the alleged corruption extends further in the agency that protects the nation’s air, water and land.
Over the past 12 years, John C. Beale was often away from his job as a high-level staffer at the Environmental Protection Agency. He cultivated an air of mystery and explained his lengthy absences by telling his bosses that he was doing top-secret work, including for the CIA.
For years, apparently, no one checked.
Now, Beale is charged with stealing nearly $900,000 from the EPA by receiving pay and bonuses he did not deserve. He faces up to three years in prison.
Beale, 64, who was a senior policy adviser in the Office of Air and Radiation, is expected to plead guilty at a hearing scheduled for Monday at U.S. District Court in Washington.
“This is a situation where one individual went to great lengths to deceive and defraud the U.S. government,” said EPA spokeswoman Alisha Johnson.
Beale’s attorney, John W. Kern, declined to comment on the case, as did a spokesman for U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr.
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