Did defective helmets endanger lives?

Fraud is never acceptable. But when a company cheats on equipment used by our brave soldiers risking life and limb in combat, it is shameful and repulsive.

It is unthinkable that a defense contractor would supply non-conforming helmets to soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, but that is exactly what the government claimed happened.

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An Indian tribe named Spirit Lake Tribe owns a defense firm name Sioux Manufacturing Corporation. This company was paid $53 million to supply Kevlar shields to be used in helmets worn by the military.

The government contract had specifications dictating that a certain number of woven yarns be of finished protective synthetic fiber cloth, known as Kevlar. The contract also required Sioux Manufacturing to certify on each invoice that the required number of strands were used.

In June 2006, federal agents raided the plant based upon allegations by two employees of the company that Sioux Manufacturing was not always meeting the number of strands of woven yarns.

After completing its investigation, the government concluded that the company failed to follow contract specifications by reducing the amount of Kevlar.

The tribal business refused to admit any wrongdoing, but recently agreed to enter into a settlement to pay $1.9 million to resolve the dispute.

The government decided not to pull the helmets from field use because the cloth still passed ballistics safety tests.

Although the government was satisfied that there were no injuries in combat as a result of the non-conforming helmets, sources close to the investigation are not so convinced. They point out that scores of soldiers have been injured or killed by bullets piercing their helmets.

Would the extra strands of Kevlar omitted by the company have saved some of our soldiers? Who knows for sure, but we should not be taking chances with goods supplied to soldiers.

The two whistleblowers who stepped forward received $406,350 as a monetary whistleblower reward from the Department of Justice under the False Claims Act, which allows rewards of up to 20 percent for reporting fraud against the government. They also had the satisfaction of ensuring that the full amount of Kevlar will be used in helmets from this point forward.

Whether the reduced amount of Kevlar was intentional or not, a company needs to go the extra mile to meet military specifications. Lives depend on it.

As citizens, we also owe a duty to our country to report fraud, especially when it involves instances where military specifications are not being met. My hat is off to the two who stepped forward.