Former Boeing Exec Pleads Guilty To Conspiracy Charges
"I deeply regret my actions and I want to apologize."
Those words, spoken in broken voice, came from former USAF
procurement officer and Boeing Vice President Darleen Druyun, who
pleaded guilty Tuesday to one count of conspiracy in federal
court.
She'll be sentenced August 6th. If convicted, Druyun faces up to
five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Druyun was in charge of
USAF negotiations with Boeing on a contract to replace the aging
KC-135 tanker fleet with up to 100 767-200s. The $23 billion deal
has come under intense fire from the likes of Senator John McCain
(R-AZ), who view it as a boondoggle. Druyun is accused of nudging
the deal toward Boeing and away from rival Airbus. Recent ANN
stories have shown that Boeing was able to convince Air Force
negotiators to bypass 19 of the 26 requirements set forth in the
original Request for Proposals. Among them were requirements were
the ability to fuel more than one aircraft at a time.
Shortly after the negotiations were concluded and Boeing got the
nod, Druyun left the Air Force to become a vice president at Boeing
with a salary of $250,000 a year.
The Pentagon investigation showed that Druyun entered secret
negotiations about the job with Boeing six weeks before recusing
herself from the tanker negotiations.
Druyun was fired from Boeing in November, along with the
company's CFO, Michael Sears (below, right). In agreeing to
cooperate with the ongoing investigation, Druyun said Sears
contacted her about a top-level job in September 2002, while she
was still conducting the tanker talks. Druyun said that the offer
came after several encrypted emails were traded between her
daughter, a Boeing employee, and Sears.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Druyun's plea should "be
used as an example for others - that this department is not going
to tolerate people who don't abide by the rules and don't adhere to
the ethics requirements and the laws."
Boeing's Response
Boeing Senior Vice
President and General Counsel Doug Bain issued the following
statement today after the U.S. Attorney’s office in
Alexandria (VA) released the details of its agreement with former
Boeing executive Darleen Druyun:
"Today's action by the US Attorney's office is the result of
Boeing voluntarily reporting unethical conduct to the US Attorney
and other government agencies last November. At that time, Boeing
dismissed Ms. Druyun and another executive involved in her hiring
after an internal company investigation revealed that they had
violated ethical practices. Boeing immediately brought this matter
to the attention of the US Attorney, the Department of Defense
Inspector General and the US Air Force.
"It is important to note the charge announced today relates to
conflict-of-interest in Ms. Druyun's hiring and is not related to
Boeing business, its financial performance or the 767 Tanker
program.
"Today’s events represent another step toward concluding a
very disappointing chapter in the company’s 88-year history
of serving our customers and operating with the highest integrity.
They also remind us that rules of governance and ethical behavior
apply to people at all levels of business, including senior
leadership."