Department of Justice Settles Conflict of Interest Case

Here's an update to our post from March 4th of this year. In that post, we reported that the Department of Justice had indicted a former DCAA auditor for violating conflict of interest laws. According to the Department of Justice, this auditor left DCAA and went to work for Alaska Aerospace. While with Alaska Aerospace, she represented the company in a matter that she was personally involved in as a Government auditor.

Yesterday, the Alaska Daily News reported on how the case was settled.  The news article states:

An Anchorage woman, who is a former auditor for the Defense Department, was sentenced to two years' probation and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine for violating conflict of interest laws.

Jodi Ann Andres, 48, was sentenced in federal court on Monday, according to a media release from U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler.

Andres broke a federal law by representing a contractor on issues she previously handled for the government.

Officials say Andres was an auditor with the Department of Defense from January 2003 to September 2006. She was the primary auditor of cost proposals, labor rates and claims for the Missile Defense Agency. But in September 2006, Andres left the DCAA to work for Alaska Aerospace as its controller.

In July 2008, Andres represented Alaska Aerospace during communications and negotiations with the DCAA about the same Missile Defense Agency contract she had previously audited. Prosecutors say this was a violation of a lifetime restriction that barred such communications.

Sounds to us like both sides of the issue wanted to close this case as quickly as possible. Two years probation and a $5 thousand fine is not all that significant, in the scheme of things.