IN BRIEF : 2 Defense Firms to Be Indicted
Two defense contractors and as many as eight individuals will be indicted soon in the first criminal charges from the probe into the Pentagon purchasing scandal, federal law enforcement officials said today.
The two-year investigation has centered on allegations that defense contractors and consultants illegally conspired to bribe Pentagon officials to obtain inside information that gave them an unfair edge in winning military contracts.
A spokeswoman for U.S. Atty. Henry Hudson, who has led the investigation, said a grand jury in nearby Alexandria, Va., is set to return an indictment Friday and that Hudson then plans to hold a news conference.
The officials told Reuters that charges will be brought against Teledyne Inc.’s defense electronics unit and Emerson Electric Co.’s Hazeltine Corp., which makes communications equipment. Both companies have said they have cooperated with the government’s investigation.
Among the individuals expected to be charged are consultants Fred Lackner and William Parkin, who represented both firms, and Stuart Berlin, a senior Navy procurement official and a close friend of Lackner, the officials said.
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