When an Air Force command in north Florida sought new battlefield technologies, Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.) steered millions in federal dollars its way to hire defense contractors.
The research effort at the Pensacola Air Force base fell apart,
however, when investigators found evidence that it was used to
improperly pay a series of companies linked to Murtha. A handful of
defense firms were paid for work that was never done or not called for
in the contracts. Some of the companies involved, based in Wyoming,
Florida and Murtha's district in Pennsylvania, had hidden owners,
prosecutors allege; one was secretly owned by the Air Force official
who helped approve the payments.
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