Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Suicide note cites worry about Air Force scandal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The senior U.S. Air Force official found dead at his home this month left a suicide note in which he expressed remorse about having triggered a new acquisition scandal for the Air Force, a source familiar with internal Air Force discussions said on Monday.

The Air Force's No. 2 acquisition official, Charles Riechers, 47, was found dead at his Virginia home in an apparent suicide, according to an Air Force memorandum.

The medical examiner's office is still waiting for results from an autopsy to confirm the cause of his death, a spokesman for the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office said.

Riechers had been facing scrutiny after The Washington Post reported the Air Force arranged to have him paid about $13,400 a month by a contractor, Commonwealth Research Institute, for two months while he awaited final clearance as the principal deputy assistant secretary for acquisition.

Riechers' ties to Commonwealth Research, registered as a nonprofit group in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, also sparked questions about a disputed $1.2 billion contract awarded to Boeing Co for depot maintenance of KC-135 refueling tankers.

Just days before Riechers' death, Pemco Aviation Group amended its protest to the Government Accountability Office over the contract, which fell under Riechers' purview..........

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