World's largest Heist???

[fastpat]

An $800,000,000 heist has occured in Iraq, money intended to pay the Iraqi Army (the new one, under US government control) has vanished.

Correspondent Steve Kroft reports on this mother of all heists.

CBS) More than half a billion dollars earmarked to fight the insurgency in Iraq was stolen by people the U.S. had entrusted to run the country's Ministry of Defense before the 2005 elections, according to Iraqi investigators.

Iraq's former minister of finance says coalition members like the U.S. and Britain are doing little to help recover the money or catch suspects, most of whom fled the country. The 60 Minutes investigation also turned up audio recordings of a suspect who seems to be discussing the transfer of $45 million to the account of a top political adviser to the interim defense minister.

"We have not been given any serious, official support from either the United States or the U.K. or any of the surrounding Arab countries,”" says Ali Allawi, who was confronted with the missing funds when he took over as Iraq’s finance minister last year.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/10/19/60minutes/main2109200.shtml

[Porsche-O-Phile]

I think the "heist" of the Social Security Trust Fund to pay for other wasteful government crap blows that out of the water, but I have to check my numbers. . .

[cashflyer]

Iraq's former minister of finance says coalition members like the U.S. and Britain are doing little to help recover the money or catch suspects..

We ain't the po-po...

... was stolen by people the U.S. had entrusted to run the country's Ministry of Defense before the 2005 elections, according to Iraqi investigators.

...and it sounds like you already know who pinched it.

We entrusted the money to your people, so the way I see it, you're on the hook for the $800M. You better find it, or we'll turn you over to our collections department. You don't want that.

[Don Wohlfarth]

Evidently the US funded the Iraq council with 1.2 billion to buy arms for the Iraqi army. The council didn't have any experience in buying arms. Someone (?) found a man with no experience so the US sent him to some school in the US and he learned his trade in 30 days.
Very little of what was purchased was as advertised. Most of the helcopters that were delivered were unsafe to fly. Some of the ammunition was so old they were afraid it would blow up.
Part of the problem of tracking the money is the paperwork on these purchases is so sketchy they don't know what they purchased or who they purchased it from.
Just one more clusterfu*k laid at the feet of Paul Bremmer.

[kach22i]

I bet most of that money ends up in terrorist hands and killing Americans.

Thanks Bush for starting this stupid war.

[91S2]

Surprise, surprise. One way or another that $$$ was not going to be put towards what it was intended for.
but cashflyer is correct, we're not there to police them.

[cashflyer]

Originally posted by Don Wohlfarth
The council didn't have any experience in buying arms. Someone (?) found a man with no experience ....

Daaaayum. They could have just called ME!!!
I have a little experience in the market, and surely would have done better than THAT guy!!


But then, I really don't like the desert.

[fastpat]

Originally posted by kach22i
I bet most of that money ends up in terrorist hands and killing Americans.

Thanks Bush for starting this stupid war.

Maybe, but a lot of it will end up in a bank account in a safe country, and spent on the good life for the thieves. I'd expect that not just a small portion was stolen by US citizens before it ever left American shores, more in Iraq, and more after it left Iraq to help smooth the waters.

[teenerted1]

three letters

PPI

[nota]

bad deal esp as all they needed to was go to the local bazzar
and buy back the stuff looted from the former army
and get it off the local market and out of the nuts hands
but no thats to hard or made too much good cence

but saddly chump change when you look at the trillion or more
that red china has conned out of the USA in the last few years
THANKS to WALL MART and the stupid ''free trade laws''

[fastpat]

Originally posted by nota
bad deal esp as all they needed to was go to the local bazzar
and buy back the stuff looted from the former army
and get it off the local market and out of the nuts hands
but no thats to hard or made too much good cence

but saddly chump change when you look at the trillion or more
that red china has conned out of the USA in the last few years
THANKS to WALL MART and the stupid ''free trade laws''

Yes, free trade, can't have that now, can we?

Bushists. Not a single capitalist among them.