Feds charge 22-year-old defense contractor with 'wide-ranging fraud'

[seemslikeadream]

http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2008/06/update-feds-cha.html?csp=34

The Justice Department announced late Friday afternoon that Efraim Diveroli of AEY Inc. has been indicted on "wide-ranging fraud charges" associated with his company's contract to supply non-standard munitions to the Afghan government.

We told you about Diveroli, an inexperienced 22-year-old, after The New York Times reported in March that he and his company were using a contract with the Pentagon to sell defective bullets and other munitions to security forces in Afghanistan.

The indictment alleges that AEY received $10.3 million for ammunition that it obtained from China, even though Diveroli signed multiple "certificates of conformance" that stated otherwise.

"It was the purpose of the conspiracy for the defendants AEY, Inc., Efraim Diveroli, David Packouz, Alexander Podrizki, and Ralph Merrill, to unjustly enrich themselves and derive a benefit by concealing and misrepresenting the fact that the ammunition being provided pursuant to the contract was manufactured and originated in China," the indictment says.

Diveroli's attorney tells The Miami Herald that his client didn't do anything wrong. "Mr. Diveroli did not acquire the Chinese-made ammo, 'directly or indirectly,' from any Communist Chinese military company,'' Howard Srebnick tells the paper. "The government knows Mr. Diveroli purchased the Chinese-made ammo from the Albanian government, which had acquired the ammo back in the <1960's> and 70's, before the Chinese embargo and before Mr. Diveroli was even born."

[wildbilln864]

1. kick...

and recked. :hi:

[seemslikeadream]

2. U.S. envoy tied to coverup in Afghan arms deal

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-for-afghan-weapons-24jun24,0,318810.story

Panel: U.S. envoy tied to coverup in Afghan arms deal
June 24, 2008
WASHINGTON — The U.S. ambassador to Albania allegedly approved removing evidence of the illegal Chinese origins of ammunition being shipped from Albania to Afghanistan by a U.S. defense contractor, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said Monday.

A federal grand jury on Friday indicted Efraim Diveroli, president of AEY Inc., the U.S. company involved, on 71 counts, including conspiracy to defraud the government on a $298 million U.S. Army contract to provide various types of ammunition to the government of Afghanistan.

The contract "prohibited delivery of ammunition acquired, directly or indirectly, from a Communist Chinese military contract," according to the South Florida U.S. attorney's office.




http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5228076&page=1

Lawmaker Charges State Department Covered Up for U.S. Contractor
22-Year-Old CEO Arrested and Charged With Selling Chinese Ammo to the Pentagon for Use in Afghanistan
By JUSTIN ROOD and KIRIT RADIA
June 23, 2008
19 comments FONT SIZE
EMAIL
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SHARE A U.S. ambassador may have helped cover up for an American defense contractor now accused of selling ammo from China to the Pentagon, according to a senior House lawmaker.

22 year-old Efraim Diveroli, CEO of AEY Inc., has been charged with selling Chinese ammo to the Pentagon.
(AP/ABC News)
More PhotosAnd the State Department may have continued the cover-up by hiding information from Congress, charged House Oversight and Government Reform Committee chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif., in a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Monday.

Federal officials last week arrested top executives at defense contractor AEY Inc., including its 22-year-old CEO, Efraim Diveroli, and charged them with acquiring old Chinese ammo from the Albanian government and supplying it to forces in Afghanistan under a Pentagon contract, a violation of the Arms Export Control Act. Diveroli's lawyer has said his client did nothing wrong.

In his letter, Waxman charged that John L. Withers II, U.S. ambassador to Albania, may have conspired with the Albanian defense chief to hide the source of the ammunition from the New York Times, which first reported on the AEY scandal.

[ColbertWatcher]

3. Looks like another tom DeLay in the making. n/t

[stillcool]

4. reminds me of Tom Ridge...

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/06/16/politics/main4184011.shtml
Tom Ridge | Bio
Joe Klein of Time Magazine recently wrote that McCain was frustrated by the obvious political reasons for why he couldn't pick any of his top three vice-presidential candidates. According to Klein, Ridge was number one on McCain's dream VP list. But how can McCain, who has had trouble rallying the conservative base, endure the grumblings among the Republican rank and file if he were to select a pro-choice running mate? Another reason for Ridge's slip in the rankings: Roll Call recently reported that "for almost two years former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge failed to register a nearly half-million-dollar lobbying contract that he had with the government of Albania." Could McCain afford the political fallout of running with a former lobbyist?

[seemslikeadream]

6. How could a kid barely able to buy beer secure a nearly $300 million defense contract?

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121435075603401563.html?mod=googlenews_wsj


How could a kid barely able to buy beer secure a nearly $300 million defense contract? It will be interesting to find out. Maybe Mr. Diveroli's story will be the one that finally fixes public attention on the carnival of fraud, waste and profiteering that characterizes our system of government-by-contractor. Maybe it will finally persuade us to ask our politicians why it is that they hire Blackwater to do the job of the Marines and pay Kellogg Brown and Root to arrange the logistics for the Army wherever it goes.

And maybe it will finally call into question one of the greatest shibboleths of conservative governance. Although contracting-out has been celebrated by big thinkers from both parties and although it has been practiced in some form or other since the earliest days of the republic, an ideological commitment to outsourcing is one of the signatures of conservative rule.

The ostensible justifications for it, in the early days, were thrift and efficiency. The 1984 "Grace Commission," in which a battalion of corporate executives ransacked the government looking for waste, recommended privatizing federal operations as a way to save money. With the government plunged deep into deficit, government needed to hire out its duties to business in order to save itself.

[stillcool]

7. I find this so coincidental.......

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Tom_Ridge
In June 2008, Ridge filed a lobbying disclosure form on his work for the government of Albania -- nearly two years late. Ridge signed a $480,000, one-year contract with Albania in September 2006, to help the country "develop an overall homeland defense strategy based on land, air and sea security." The contract identified Ridge as the "lead on strategic advice" for the Albanian government. Ridge's firm, Ridge Global, no longer works for Albania. <2>

A spokesperson for the firm said Ridge didn't think he needed to disclose his Albania work. But the Justice Department, which maintains a database of lobbyists working with foreign entities, thought he did. The Department contacted Ridge's firm, "after a story about Ridge's work appeared in the press." According to a September 2006 Associated Press article, Ridge's "main priority" was "to help Albania meet its goal of joining NATO in 2008." Albania began accession talks with NATO in April 2008. <2>
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Tom_Ridge

[seemslikeadream]

9. WOW Thanks stillcool47

House Oversight committee holds hearing on another aspect of AEY defense contract debacle

http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/alerts/387


Committee member Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA) said during the hearing that although the AEY contract in question, regarding nonstandard ammunition to Afghanistan, had been terminated, he was not convinced the government had severed ties with AEY altogether.


He described a recent visit to Iraq with fellow committee member Rep. Todd Platts (R-PA) where the two were touring a weapons facility. The commanding officer told them they were still receiving shipments from AEY. Lynch asked Executive Director of the Army Contracting Command Jeffrey Parsons for clarification and was disappointed with the response:

Rep. Lynch: They were all AEY contacts, it looks like they're still performing in this contract, and that doesn't jive with the testimony and documents I have before me. So can you tell me, is AEY still performing on some contracts in Iraq?"


Parsons: "Sir, I am not aware, and I will have to get back to you on whether they are still performing..."


Rep. Lynch: "That's not good enough..."

The committee is also pursuing an investigation of the role of the U.S. Embassy in Albania in assisting the cover-up of the illegal Chinese-made ammunition.

[stillcool]

12. Oy..

I think the weapons that Iran is accused of supplying to Iraq are Chinese made. Not that that means anything..just interesting. From 2007

http://www.iranmania.com/News/ArticleView/Default.asp?NewsCode=52059&NewsKind=Current+Affairs
Taliban uses weapons made in China, Iran
LONDON, June 5 (IranMania) - Sophisticated new weapons, including Chinese anti-aircraft missiles as well as items made in Iran, are reaching Taliban forces in Afghanistan, according to government officials and other sources, The Washington Times reported.

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said during a visit to Kabul yesterday that there was no evidence as yet that Tehran government officials are involved in shipping weapons to the country for use against US and NATO forces.

He did not comment on the appearance in the country of Chinese anti-aircraft weapons, evidence of which was provided to The Washington Times yesterday.

A set of photographs was provided depicting Taliban insurgents showing off new supplies of Chinese-made HN-5 shoulder-fired missiles.

[stillcool]

14. and something else...

http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/AEYs-Ammunition-Aint-An-April-Fools-Alas-04824/

Reports indicate that AEY shopped across the former Eastern Bloc for Soviet-caliber small arms ammunition, including significant business with Albania whose stocks are considered substandard. That business was reportedly conducted through Evdin Ltd. in Cyprus, and its terms raise issues on two fronts. One is the possibility of corruption in Albania, using Evdin as a middleman firm to divide the profits with officials while remaining outside of US government accountability. Another is the issue of sourcing, given that millions of those rounds were produced in China and may thereby violate American law.

The quality of the other stocks reportedly varied widely from excellent to substandard, and significant quantities of the ammunition delivered by AEY reportedly dated from the 1960s. Other allegations include dealings with Petr Bernatik, who had been accused by Czech officials of illegal arms trafficking and was listed on the US State Department’s Defense Trade Controls watch list.

A March 27/08 DefenseLINK release states:

“As of today, the Army has issued five task orders, collectively worth $155.3 million, the official said. AEY has made about 80 deliveries, with an estimated value of $54.6 million, into Kabul. Those deliveries violated two specific terms of the contract, the official said. One stated that the ammunition could not be acquired directly or indirectly from the People’s Republic of China, and the other specified that it must be packaged to comply with best commercial practices for international shipment.”

[Hannah Bell]

8. that's an interesting question, one which probably won't be examined.

who financed him, & who's he taking the fall for.

[seemslikeadream]

10. Efraim was "a boy genius" who is "hard to control."

At first, Pentagon defended its contractor AEY proposal represented best value to the goverment

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/28/afghanistan.usa

At first, the Pentagon defended its contractor. "AEY's proposal represented the best value to the government," the Army Sustainment Command wrote to the New York Times. Henry Waxman, the member of congress from California who heads the committee on government oversight, said yesterday he would conduct hearings into the contract next month.



........



In 2006, AEY was among 10 firms bidding on a contract to supply 52 kinds of ammunition for the Afghan security forces. But while his business was taking off, Diversoli was accused of violent behaviour involving two girlfriends and the parking attendant at his apartment building. In December 2006, Diversoli was charged with battery after beating up the parking attendant, according to the newspaper. Police recovered a forged driving licence from Diversoli's flat which led to a separate charge. He entered a programme for first time offenders to avoid trial.

AEY's contract was approved weeks later in January 2007, and Diversoli began scouring the globe for suppliers. Diversoli turned to Albania, which had large weapons dumps. However, the New York Times reported that the firm ended up paying for Kalashnikov rounds that were so obsolete that the US and Nato funded programmes to see them safely destroyed.

AEY also purchased 9 million cartridges from a Czech citizen who had been linked to illegal arms trafficking to Congo.



......



AEY also supplied weapons to US agencies, and rifles to Iraqi forces






AEY & Efraim Diveroli: Subject to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act?


http://pogoblog.typepad.com/pogo/2008/03/aey-efraim-dive.html

AEY & Efraim Diveroli: Subject to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act?
Based on my quick Google search of the web for AEY, Efraim Diveroli and "Foreign Corrupt Practices Act," I haven't seen anyone ask the question (though someone may have): Is Efraim Diveroli's alleged bribery of Albanian government officials, if true, a violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act? It seems that it would be the case. According to the New York Times:

As Mr. Diveroli began to fill the Army’s huge orders, he was entering a shadowy world, and in his brief interview he suggested that he was aware that corruption could intrude on his dealings in Albania. “What goes on in the Albanian Ministry of Defense?” he said. “Who’s clean? Who’s dirty? Don’t want to know about it.”

The way AEY’s business was structured, Mr. Diveroli, at least officially, did not deal directly with Albanian officials. Instead, a middleman company registered in Cyprus, Evdin Ltd., bought the ammunition and sold it to his company.

The local packager involved in the deal, Mr. Trebicka, said that he suspected that Evdin’s purpose was to divert money to Albanian officials.

The purchases, Mr. Trebicka said, were a flip: Albania sold ammunition to Evdin for $22 per 1,000 rounds, he said, and Evdin sold it to AEY for much more. The difference, he said he suspected, was shared with Albanian officials, including Mr. Pinari, then the head of the arms export agency, and the defense minister at the time, Fatmir Mediu.

...

The conversation, he said, showed that the American company was aware of corruption in its dealings in Albania and that Heinrich Thomet, a Swiss arms dealer, was behind Evdin.




http://www.miamiherald.com/news/columnists/fred_grimm/story/475617.html
But Sonnett was taken aback by Diveroli. ``Well, I think it is passing strange that a 22-year-old can sign a $300 million worth of weapons contract with the Pentagon. I suppose the American dream is always possible.''

Even by the mythical standards of South Florida, a 20-something Miami Beach party boy seems an unlikely entry in our gallery of rogue arms peddlers with the likes of Soghanalian. Or Nazi turned arms smuggler Klaus Altmann-Barbie. Or Fort Lauderdale's flamboyant Ken Burnstine, the drug smuggler and arms dealer who may -- or not -- have perished in a 1976 plane crash. Or Gerard Latchinian, whose arms dealings were interrupted when he was caught plotting a coup in Honduras. Or David Duncan, tripped up in a deal sending guns to Peru. Or the bevy of Miami arms dealers exposed in the Iran-Contra scandal.

http://www.exportlawblog.com/archives/313

Of course, you didn’t expect that this blog would let a story about an arms company run by a 22-year-old kid and a 25-year-old “professional masseur” escape without comment, did you? The story, which the New York Times broke on Thursday, revealed how AEY, Inc., the company run by 22-year-old Efraim Diveroli and his massage therapist friend, was paid hundreds of millions of dollars by the United States Government to supply sub-standard ammunition to Afghan forces. Some of the ammo supplied by AEY is alleged to have been up to 40-years-old, i.e., manufactured before the AEY executives were even born.

There is at least one export law angle to the story. It arises from the discovery that some of the ammunition delivered by AEY had been procured from China. The Times story noted:

Tens of millions of the rifle and machine-gun cartridges were manufactured in China, making their procurement a possible violation of American law.

I’d say that’s more than a “possible” violation. When AEY arranged the export of ammunition from China to Afghanistan it would have been acting as a broker under Part 129 of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (the “ITAR”). Section 129.5 of the ITAR notes that “no brokering proposals involving any country referred to in § 126.1,” e.g. China, “may be carried out by any person without first obtaining the written approval of” the Department of State’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls. And we know that AEY would not have had such written approval because section 126.1 says that it is the policy of DDTC to deny licenses involving China.


http://edition.cnn.com/2008/US/03/28/arms.dealer/?iref=mpstoryview

Diveroli is president of AEY Inc., a South Florida company which, according to U.S. government documents, has done more than $10 million of business with the U.S. government since 2004

He's a genius about anything to do with weapons," the 72-year-old says. "Ever since he was a little boy, I would take him to gun shows and he could identify every model of guns. People would ask: How can he do that so young? He has a gift, I would tell them.''

Michael Diveroli, Efraim's father, told CNN affiliate WFOR-TV that he wished his son had turned his intellect elsewhere.

He said Efraim was "a boy genius" who is "hard to control." Read the WFOR story

"I would prefer he became a nice Jewish doctor or lawyer rather than an arms dealer," WFOR quoted Michael Diveroli as saying. Watch how father says son runs his own show »

For now, relatives say Efraim Diveroli is out of the country. CNN attempts to contact him have not been successful.



http://www.lindsayfincher.com/2008/03/aey_inc_wtf.html


And that's not their only federal contract!

As Efraim Diveroli arrived in Miami Beach, AEY was transforming itself by aggressively seeking security-related contracts.
It won a $126,000 award for ammunition for the Special Forces; AEY also provided ammunition or equipment in 2004 to the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Transportation Security Administration and the State Department.

By 2005, when Mr. Diveroli became AEY’s president at age 19, the company was bidding across a spectrum of government agencies and providing paramilitary equipment — weapons, helmets, ballistic vests, bomb suits, batteries and chargers for X-ray machines — for American aid to Pakistan, Bolivia and elsewhere.

It was also providing supplies to the American military in Iraq, where its business included a $5.7 million contract for rifles for Iraqi forces.

Two federal officials involved in contracting in Baghdad said AEY quickly developed a bad reputation. “They weren’t reliable, or if they did come through, they did after many excuses,” said one of them, who asked that his name be withheld because he was not authorized to speak with reporters.



Arms Dealing Company Was Listed As ‘Minority-Owned’


http://www.thejewishweek.com/viewArticle/c37_a7197/News/National.html


As the government investigation was started, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee launched its own inquiry into the arms shipments. A spokeswoman for Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), the committee chair, said invitations to appear before the committee April 17 had been sent to Diveroli, Packouz, the company’s vice president, and Levi Meyer, its general manager.


Dudes, is everyone who works on these government contracts completely high? Is it too much to ask that you actually investigate who you will be handing out $300 million contracts to?!




March 27.2008
Mr. Efraim E. Diveroli
President
AEY Incorporated
975 Arthtx Godfrey Road, Suite 2l I
Miami Beach, FL 33140-3341
Dear Mr. Diveroli:
Today's New York Times raises questions about your company's contracts with the U.S.
government to provide weapons, ammunition, and munitions to military forces in Iraq and
Afghanistan.' I am writing to request your testimony at a hearing on these matters before the
Oversight Committee at 10:00 a.m. on April17,2008, in Room 2157 of the Rayburn House
Office Building.
At the hearing, please be prepared to discuss your company's financial history, past
performance, and compliance with U.S. law and government contracting regulations. The
Committee will be sending you under separate cover a request for documents relating to this
issue. In addition, I request that you make yourself available for a transcribed interview with
Committee staff on or before April 11, 2008.
The Committee on Oversight and Govemment Reform is the principal oversight
committee in the House of Representatives and has broad oversight jurisdiction as set forth in
House Rule X. Information for witnesses appearing before the Committee is contained in the
enclosed'Witness Information Sheet. Also enclosed with this letter are the Committee's
procedures for transcribed interviews.
' Supplier Under Scrutiny on Aging Arms for Afghans, New York Times (Mar. 27,2008)
(online at www.nytimes.com/2008103l27lworldlasia/27ammo.html?_r:1&hp&ore Èslogin).
Mr. Efraim E. Diveroli
March 27,2008
Page2
Ifyou have any questions regarding this request, please contact Theodore Chuang or
Suzanne Renaud with the Committee staff at [phone].
Sincerelv.

Henry A. Waxman
Chairman
Enclosures
cc: Tom Davis
Ranking Minority Member



Is he competition for Erik Prince, Brent Wilkes?


http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/03/todays_must_read_304.php


Botach Tactical and AEY Inc., family arms dealerships


http://majikthise.typepad.com/majikthise_/2008/03/botach-tactic-1.html


http://www.botachtactical.com /


Botach Tactical doesn't advertise guns or explosives on its Yahoo-hosted website, but they will sell you plastic training guns and real magazines. Body bags, too. (Before you whip out your credit cards, be advised that Botach seems to have a lot of bitterly dissatisfied customers.)


In 2005 Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Ca) and some of her constituents confronted Botach at his at unmarked establishment at 3423 W. 43rd Place in Los Angeles. Local residents and city officials became concerned when they found out that Botach had quietly converted a former pawn shop into a gun dealership 12 years earlier. Botach has many other business interests in California, including Botach Management, also at 3423 W. 43rd Place, and a cold storage warehouse around the corner from his tactical store/gun dealership/property management company.

[seemslikeadream]

5. U.S. reviews envoy's conduct in Albania arms case

http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN2437140320080624
U.S. reviews envoy's conduct in Albania arms case

Youthful bullet dealer charged with Pentagon fraud
20 Jun 2008

powered by Sphere
Featured Broker sponsored link
#1 FX Broker - Shares Mag 2007 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The State Department said on Tuesday it would review the conduct of the U.S. ambassador to Albania, after a congressman alleged the envoy knew about a case in which Chinese-made ammunition was falsely relabeled as manufactured in Albania and shipped to the Afghan army.

In a hearing on Tuesday and a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice the previous day, Henry Waxman, chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform raised questions about the envoy's role in a case that has led to the indictment of a U.S. arms dealer.

Efraim Diveroli and three officers of his company, AEY Inc, were charged by a federal grand jury last week with trying to defraud the U.S. government in a $298 million contract to supply the Afghan army with ammunition.

AEY and its president had falsely told the Army the ammunition, 40-year-old Chinese gun cartridges, was manufactured in Albania, the indictment said.

U.S. law prohibits the acquisition of munitions from Chinese military companies.

[stillcool]

11. interesting ..His Grandfather thinks it's political..

Diveroli's grandfather, Angelo, who lives in North Miami-Dade County, said he learned about his grandson's arrest Thursday night from family members.

"That's all I know," Angelo Diveroli, 72, said. "I think there's somebody behind this. I think it's political."
---------------------------------------
In a related document, the Army summarized the history of Diveroli's company, AEY, which was founded by his father in Miami Beach in 1999, noting that it started out selling surplus goods, wholesale scrap and waste materials.

Diveroli's father is not among the four AEY employees arrested on Friday, according to law enforcement officials.

In an earlier interview, Diveroli's grandfather, Angelo, described him as a "weapons genius'' who was being unfairly treated by the government and other weapons contractors.

Diveroli's fortunes rose with U.S. military interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The company landed its first military contract in 2004, generating revenue of more than $1 million. But Diveroli's business with the Defense Department grew so dramatically that he snared contracts worth $200 million last year. The largest was to supply ammunition to the Afghan National Police and the Afghan National Army, which were fighting al Qaeda and Taliban insurgents.
Miami Herald staff writer Luisa Yanez contributed to this report.
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking_news/story/577409.html

[The Backlash Cometh]

13. ten to one that the 22 year old was selected because someone

was relying on his inexperience to make such an unethical trade.

[stillcool]

15. you know this also reminds me of Watergate...

where the whole reason they got caught was for burglary. This guy seems to have dug his grave when he got nailed for assault...

Supplier under scrutiny on aging arms for Afghans
By C. J. Chivers
Published: March 27, 2008

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/03/27/asia/27ammo.php?page=1
The younger Diveroli's munitions experience appeared to be limited to a short-lived job in Los Angeles for Botach Tactical, a military and police supply company owned by his uncle, Bar-Kochba Botach.
********
Diveroli, in a brief telephone interview late last year, denied any wrongdoing. "I know that my company does everything 100 percent on the up and up, and that's all I'm concerned about," he said.

He also suggested that his activities should be shielded from public view. "AEY is working on a moderately classified Department of Defense project," he said. "I really don't want to talk about the details.
------------------------------------

It was also providing supplies to the American military in Iraq, where its business included a $5.7 million contract for rifles for Iraqi forces.

Two federal officials involved in contracting in Baghdad said AEY quickly developed a bad reputation. "They weren't reliable, or if they did come through, they did after many excuses," said one of them, who asked that his name be withheld because he was not authorized to speak with reporters.
****

In November 2005, a young woman sought an order of protection from him in the domestic violence division of Dade County Circuit Court.
****
Diveroli sought court delays on national security grounds. "I am the President and only official employee of my business," he wrote to the judge on Dec. 8, 2006 "My business is currently of great importance to the country as I am licensed Defense Contractor to the United States Government in the fight against terrorism in Iraq and I am doing my very best to provide our troops with all their equipment needs on pending critical contracts."

------------------------------------
As AEY's bid for its largest government contract was being considered, Diveroli's personal difficulties continued. On Nov. 26, 2006, the Miami Beach police were called to his condominium during an argument between him and another girlfriend. According to the police report, he had thrown her "clothes out in the hallway and told her to get out."

A witness told the police Diveroli had dragged her back into the apartment. The police found the woman crying; she said she had not been dragged. Diveroli was not charged.

On Dec. 21, 2006, the police were called back to the condominium. Diveroli and AEY's vice president, David Packouz, had just been in a fight with the valet parking attendant

[TroglodyteScholar]

16. "AEY is working on a moderately classified Department of Defense project"

Moderately classified? :crazy:

[PinkyisBlue]

17. Hey, Mr. Diveroli's supporting the troops the only way he knows how--

through greed, corruption, lying and unethical trade deals. He's a Republican, after all.

What ever happened to all those stockpiles of weapons that disappeared shortly after "shock and awe"?

[mojowork_n]

18. Maybe the poor kid just forgot to grease some essential palm.

Did anyone see Nick Cage in 2005's "Lord of War?"

According to the people that put together that screenplay, there are only two essential truths about gun-running:

1. Those that know, don't care.
   
2. Those that care, don't know.
   

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/lord_of_war/

[TheWatcher]

22. I was just about to bring that film up.

It's the first thing I thought of when I first heard this story.

[Mind_your_head]

19. What-are-we-gonna-do?

Call fraud-busters!

:wow:

------

Sorry, but NOTHING EVER HAPPENS WITH THESE CASES - it seems.

There "ain't no justice" anywhere. I'm tired. I need to 'tend' to my own family.

Put these f*ckers in jail already, and let us move-on without these 'leeches' on society already! Geez.....the answer is OBVIOUS.

[Selatius]

20. Watch. In 35 years, some loser dumbfuck like Efraim Diveroli will become the President of America.

In America someone could conceivably fail up the income ladder.

[Mind_your_head]

21. No. America can still redeem itself.

I, for one, will FIGHT for that. The principles contained with the Constitution of the United States of America are most WORTHY.

Evil 'elements' are attacking this fair/righteous Constitution from every side.

Don't give in. Don't give up.

M_Y_H

[TheWatcher]

23. Words to live by, MYH.

Well Said.