- Dale Stoffel
-
Dale C. Stoffel 
Born 1961 Died December 8, 2004 (age 43) Residence Monongahela, Pennsylvania[1] Nationality American Alma mater Washington & Jefferson College Occupation businessman and arms dealer[2] Spouse Barbara[3] Dale C. Stoffel (1961 - December 8, 2004) was an American businessman and arms dealer who was involved with the American reconstruction efforts following the Iraq War. After alerting the Pentagon of corruption and payment irregularities with members of the Iraqi government, he was killed in an ambush in Taji, Iraq.
Contents
Early life and education
He was born in the Washington, D.C. area and his family moved to Pittsburgh when he was young.[2] His father worked at WQED and his mother was a homemaker.[2] He earned his Eagle Scout designation. He attended Washington & Jefferson College, graduating in 1984.[4] In order to pay for college, he joined the National Guard of the United States at the age of nineteen.[2] He was a member of the Republican Party.[2]
Early career
During the 1990s, he worked on a top secret program for the United States military, procuring Russian, Chinese and other foreign-made weaponry for testing.[5] In this job, he used Eastern Europes contacts, especially in Ukraine and Bulgaria, allowing him to purchase surface-to-air missiles and antiaircraft systems.[5]
He later became a businessman and arms dealer.[2] His lifestyle mirrored that of a soldier of fortune[6] and he was known to routinely carry an automatic weapon slung across his shoulder with a cigar in his mouth.[3]
Among his duties, he was executive vice president of international development for Canonsburg-based CLI Corp.[1]
Iraq operations
Defense contracts
He had a close relationship with a number of Washington lobbyists connected to Ahmed Chalabi.[2]
After the Iraq War began in 2003, Stoffel's company, Wye Oak Technology, received one of the first contracts issued by the new Iraqi Ministry of Defense to refurbish the country's Soviet-era T-55 tanks and artillery.[5] The contract was jointly administered by Wye Oak and another Stoffel-related company, CLI, Inc.[7]
The first shipment of tanks arrived in Iraq in November and was used to supply Iraq's 1st Mechanized Brigade.[5] He understood the risks involved with his job, but hoped that by aiding the Iraqi military, he could help U.S. troops return home sooner.[1]
All told, his contracts with the Iraqi government were worth more than $40 million.[8]
Complaints about payments
He was an arms dealer with a mysterious past, a swashbuckling, larger-than-life character who'd been around the block of international intrigue more than once. But in all the chaos, in a place overrun with mercenaries, privateers and shady officials, he nonetheless expected everyone in Iraq to play by his rules.
In Spring 2004, he alerted the Pentagon to irregularities regarding the way his company was being compensated.[5] The Ministry's method, routing payments through a "mysterious" Lebanese businessman, gave rise to his suspicions that Iraqi officials were receiving kickbacks.[5] He also alleged that the Ministry was forcing him to use preferred sub-contractors.[5] He described thousands of dollars in payments being delivered to American contracting offices in pizza boxes, pizza delivery-style, and dead drop payoffs in paper sacks dropped off throughout the Green Zone.[10] On May 20, 2004, Stoffel was granted limited immunity from prosecution by the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction in a whistleblower complaint.[10]
By November, Stoffel was owed $24.7 million from the Ministry.[5] His case was part of a larger trend involving middlemen and kickbacks in the Iraqi government and the rebuilding process.[5]
He returned to the United States in November 2004.[7] He sent the Pentagon a letter on December 3, 2004 outlining his concerns. He also met with Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum, who wrote to Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Stoffel's behalf.[5] He returned to Iraq in December.[7] A short time later, he and his business partner Joseph Wemple were summoned to Camp Taji in Taji, Iraq to discuss the problem with British Brig. Gen. David Clements, who was deputy commander of the mission to train Iraqi troops, and the Lebanese businessman.[5] After several days of discussion, Clements told the businessman to release the money.[5]
Attack
On December 8, the vehicle carrying Stoffel, Wemple, and an interpreter was attacked.[5] As the car was leaving Taji for Baghdad, a car rammed theirs head-on.[5] Two masked men jumped out and killed Wemple and Stoffel in a hail of bullets; the interpreter was not killed and went missing.[5] Stoffel had been shot several times in the head and back, while Wemple was shot once through the head.[2] A previously unknown group, Brigades of the Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility through an online video.[5] However, security experts doubted the claim and questioned whether the video was simply a ruse.[5] The video described Stoffel as "CIA shadow director" and "close friend of George Bush".[6]
His death raised questions about the integrity of the Iraqi reconstruction effort, which had been hampered by corruption.[1] The Sunday Timessaid that Stoffel's death "appeared all too predictable. He was an adventurer who seemed to have met his end at the hands of jihadists while engaged in one of the riskiest businesses on the planet. "[6]
Following the attacks, CLI, Inc. left Iraq.[7]
According of officials investigating his death, there is no evidence that the attack was related to his allegations of corruption.[10] The murders remain unsolved.[10] Stoffel's brother, who also worked for Wye Oak, received several death threats, warning him to stay away from Iraq.[6]
Investigations
In 2009, an investigation into high-level officials, at least partially spawned by Stoffel's 2004 allegations, was opened.[10] The investigation, including the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, Justice Department, the Army’s Criminal Investigation Command, and other federal agencies investigated numerous instances of graft and bribery among the Iraqi reconstruction effort.[10]
In 2009, his wife, Barbara sued the Iraqi government for $25 million.[3]
References
- ^ a b c d "FBI probes shooting of contractor in Iraq". Pittsburgh Tribune Review. January 21, 2005. http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_295399.html.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Roston, Aram (June 2005). "The Unquiet American". Washington Monthly. Archived from the original on 2010-11-24. http://www.webcitation.org/5uUo5iPbR.
- ^ a b c McDougall, Paul (July 23, 2009). "Contractor's Widow Seeks $25 Million From Iraq". Information Week. Archived from the original on 2010-11-24. http://www.webcitation.org/5uUpQF1Wc.
- ^ "2003-2004 Alumni Donors" (PDF). Washington & Jefferson College. p. 25. http://www.washjeff.edu/uploadedFiles/Development/Alumni_Parents_Friends/Development/Donor_Recognition/Alumni%20Donors.pdf.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Silverstein, Ken; T. Christian Miller and Patrick J. McDonnel (January 20, 2005). "U.S. Contractor Slain in Iraq Had Alleged Graft". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. http://www.webcitation.org/5uUpMqNYM.
- ^ a b c d Baxter, Sarah (February 22, 2009). "Shot arms dealer ‘knew too much’". The Sunday Times (London). Archived from the original on 2011-01-25. http://www.webcitation.org/5vzhQaqFB.
- ^ a b c d White, Josh (January 21, 2005). "Deaths of U.S. Contractors Probed". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2011-01-25. http://www.webcitation.org/5vzhXrxUG.
- ^ Oliver, Jeff (December 17, 2004). "Area resident killed in Iraq" (in Trib Total Media). Valley Independent. http://pittsburghlive.com/x/valleyindependent/news/monongahela/s_284467.html.
- ^ Hastings, Deborah (February 12, 2006). "To live and work in Iraq: Corruption, missing millions and two dead American contractors". Austin American-Statesman (Associated Press). Archived from the original on 2006-02-22. http://web.archive.org/web/20060222071344/http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/world/02/12DEADINIRAQ.html.
- ^ a b c d e f Glanz, James; C.J. Chivers and William K. Rashbaum (February 14, 2009). "Inquiry on Graft in Iraq Focuses on U.S. Officers". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2010-11-24. http://www.webcitation.org/5uUo8j26O.
Categories:- 1961 births
- 2004 deaths
- Arms traders
- American people murdered abroad
- People murdered in Iraq
- Washington & Jefferson College alumni
- People from Washington County, Pennsylvania
- Pennsylvania Republicans
- Iraq War casualties
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