LOS ALAMOS, N.M. (AP) - Two more Los Alamos National Laboratory employees are suspected of fraudulent purchasing activities, just months after two former employees were sentenced in a purchasing scandal, the nuclear weapons lab said Wednesday.
One of the employees is accused of misusing credit cards meant to purchase gasoline for lab vehicles. Officials at the northern New Mexico lab said the employee admitted to buying about $3,000 worth of gas for acquaintances in exchange for money. Another employee is accused of operating what appears to be a fraudulent purchasing scheme in which payments were collected for purchases.
Earlier this year, two former Los Alamos employees accused of being part of a purchasing scandal that rocked the lab in 2002 were sentenced to prison for conspiracy and mail fraud charges. Peter Bussolini and Scott Alexander were accused of putting hundreds of thousands of dollars in questionable purchases on the lab's account, including television sets, barbecues and hunting gear.
Since then, the lab has changes its policies and added computer software to track purchases as well as manage payroll and vacation time.
Los Alamos spokesman James Rickman said the lab is cooperating with law enforcement but he declined to release further details Wednesday about the investigation. |