Military Contractor Settles Case Of Absentee Employees

The Department of Justice anounced on February 12, 2014 that MPRI Inc., a Virginia-based company, has agreed to pay the United States Government $3.2 Million to resolve a case involving false labor charges for work on a contract to support of the Army in Afghanistan. The case centered on allegations that MPRI billed for employees who had not worked because they were granted leave and were out of the country. Under the Army contract, MPRI was to support the Army in redesigning and rebuilding the Afghan Defense Sector to create a national security system for Afghanistan that would accommodate a modern Western military. The suit was filed under the False Claims Act by a whistleblower who worked for MPRI in Afghanistan between 2007 and 2009 as a finance officer and contract support official. The alleged false billing by MPRI occurred between March 2005 and October 2010. The case is captioned U.S. ex rel. Lankford v. MPRI Inc., Case No. 10-193 (S.D. Ohio).