Sunday, December 2, 2012

A Cautionary Tale: Navy purchaser diverted $74,000 for plane, gadgets

"While stationed with the Navy SEALs, Lt. Cmdr. Christopher Lee Tappen wanted an easy way to fly home to the West Coast to see his wife. The plan he devised now could land him in prison. Tappen, 35, admitted in federal court Wednesday that he built a plane, on the government's dime, out of parts he ordered through his job. He pleaded guilty to filing a false claim and faces up to five years in prison when he is sentenced April 1."
This is a cautionary tale that reflects how easy it is for a soldier, sailor or marine to throw away a promising career by diverting government assets as well as a reflection of how the Black Ops community spends and accounts (or, rather, fails to account for) the large amounts of materiel that have come their way in the last decade or so. The waste is said to be incredible and it is little wonder that this schmuck, watching that process every day, thought he could get away with his kit-plane project.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

hmmmmm, file this one under ..

Great Moments in Monumental Stupidity
or
WTF was I thinking?

Just goes to show that even Navy Seals can succumb to a lapse of judgement, but on a scale of 1-10, I'd submit this fool red lined the DUMB-O-METER.

Gordy said...

Hey, it worked for Johnny Cash (One Piece at a Time)!