The Washington Times, 14 May 2009, Sara A. Carter
The Department of Homeland Security says it is reviewing a last-minute Bush administration appointment of a shipping industry executive and registered lobbyist to serve on a government maritime security board, even as his company faced serious allegations of defrauding the U.S. military in war zones.
The appointment of Earl Agron, vice president of security for American President Lines Ltd. (APL), has raised questions in part because he continues to lobby on issues under the jurisdiction of the Coast Guard's Maritime Security Advisory Committee - the same committee on which he now serves, according to the company's April 17 filing with the secretary of the Senate.
His company is a subsidiary of the Singapore government's Neptune Orient Lines Ltd., which is a large ocean carrier with vessels calling on key ports in the United States.
Mr. Agron was appointed Jan. 8, just one month before APL agreed to pay a record $26 million-plus fine to settle federal lawsuit allegations that it had defrauded the Pentagon over many years.
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