Veco Corp
Encyclopedia
VECO Corporation was an Alaska-based oil pipeline service and construction company until its purchase in September 2007 by CH2M HILL
. As of that date, the VECO Corporation ceased to exist. Founded in 1968, the company grew to become a major player in the Alaskan oil industries' support. VECO also was a worldwide player in the oil industry, having divisions in many major oil markets.
Exxon Valdez
ran aground on Bligh Reef
, spilling eleven million gallons of crude oil into the waters of Prince William Sound
. The Exxon Valdez oil spill
was the largest in United States history.
VECO was responsible for large parts of the spill's clean up, hiring 2,500 workers to clean up the environmental disaster.
which was published within the pages of the latter. The Voice of the Times is what remains of the Anchorage Times
, a newspaper which went out of business due to competition from the Anchorage Daily News in 1992.
In accordance with an agreement reached between the former editors of the Anchorage Times and the Anchorage Daily News, space was provided for the Times editors to provide a counterpoint to the Anchorage Daily News. From 1992 until 2002, the Anchorage Daily News provided this space for free. In 2002 the agreement was renewed for five years, but the "Voice of the Times" was required to pay for the space as though it was advertising.
On May 9, 2007 the Anchorage Daily News announced it would end the arrangement at months end, and it would cease publishing the Voice of the Times. Although ADN publisher Mike Sexton said the decision had been made a week prior, he was quoted a few days before this announcement as saying the situation was still under review. The Voice of the Times now exists as a blog
.
and the Internal Revenue Service
raided the offices of several prominent members of the Alaska Legislature
. Raided were the offices of Sen. John Cowdery
(R-Anchorage), Senate President Ben Stevens
(R-Anchorage), Rep. Vic Kohring
(R-Wasilla), Rep. Bev Masek (R-Willow), Rep. Bruce Weyhrauch
(R-Juneau), Sen. Don Olson (D-Nome), and Rep. Pete Kott
(R-Eagle River). The investigation involved allegations of illegal gifts to law makers from VECO. Senator Olson was never charged but it was found he had turned down illegal campaign assistance.
Sarah Palin
is another Alaskan politician that received campaign support from VECO. The International Herald Tribune
reported on September 3, 2008, "As Palin campaigned unsuccessfully in 2002 to become lieutenant governor, she received contributions from executives at VECO Corp., a powerful Alaska oil field services company." http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/09/03/america/CVN-Palin.php The questionable donations totaled $4,500, over 10% of all her funding that year. Allen admitted that he had given executives money to be contributed in his "bonus" program though he denied knowing that the laundering was illegal.
Also named in the search warrants were VECO officers Bill J. Allen
, Rick Smith and Pete Leathard.
and Vice President for Community & Government Affairs Rick Smith pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Anchorage to charges of extortion, bribery, and conspiracy to impede the Internal Revenue Service.
In addition to the three politicians arraigned on May 4, the new court filings mention illegal payments made to a former state senator, named as "Senator B" in court documents, who received over $200,000 from VECO Corp. over several years, income which Senator B reported as "consulting fees." In the May 7 guilty pleas by Allen and Smith, they admit that the only work done by Senator B in exchange for the funds was advancing VECO's agenda in the state legislature. The only former state senator who matches the information contained in court documents about Senator B is former Senator Ben Stevens
(R-Anchorage), son of U.S. Senator Ted Stevens
(R-Alaska). To date, Ben Stevens has not been indicted. Another state senator discussed in the court documents who later pled guilty, was identified as "Senator A." He was John Cowdery. On 3/12/09 ex-state representative Beverly Masek pled guilty to taking $4,000 in bribes from Allen
was under federal investigation for possibly taking bribes, illegal gratuities or unreported gifts from VECO. Between 1996 and 2006, Young received $157,000 from VECO employees and its political action committee. In the first half of 2007, Young spent more than $250,000 of campaign contributions for legal fees.
Alaska State House representatives Pete Kott
, Bruce Weyhrauch
and Vic Kohring
were all charged with federal crimes as part of the investigation into VECO.
On May 29, 2007, the Anchorage Daily News
reported that the FBI and a federal grand jury were investigating an "extensive" remodeling project at Senator Ted Stevens
' home in Girdwood
, Alaska. The remodeling work, organized by VECO, more than doubled the size of the home (public records show that the home is now 2471 square feet (229.6 m²) and valued at about $441,000). The repairs could have cost anywhere between $130,000 and 250,000, and the payments Ted Stevens paid were about $160,000. Stevens' Alaska home was raided by the FBI and IRS on July 30, 2007. Stevens was indicted by a federal grand jury
on July 29, 2008 on seven counts alleging that Stevens received hundreds of thousands of dollars in gifts that he did not declare on his US Senate financial disclosure forms. Stevens was convicted on all seven of these charges on October 27, 2008. All the convictions were vacated on April 7, 2009 due to gross prosecutorial misconduct
.
to acquire VECO. http://www.adn.com/money/story/8898490p-8798382c.html. The deal was finalized in September 2007, with CH2M HILL integrating VECO into its operations.http://www.ch2m.com/corporate/markets/energy/veco.asp
CH2M Hill
CH2M Hill is an American-based global provider of engineering, construction, and operations services for corporations, nonprofits, and federal, state, and local governments. The firm is headquartered in Meridian, an unincorporated area of Douglas County, Colorado in the Denver-Aurora Metropolitan...
. As of that date, the VECO Corporation ceased to exist. Founded in 1968, the company grew to become a major player in the Alaskan oil industries' support. VECO also was a worldwide player in the oil industry, having divisions in many major oil markets.
Exxon Valdez oil spill
On March 24, 1989, the oil tankerOil tanker
An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a merchant ship designed for the bulk transport of oil. There are two basic types of oil tankers: the crude tanker and the product tanker. Crude tankers move large quantities of unrefined crude oil from its point of extraction to refineries...
Exxon Valdez
Exxon Valdez
Oriental Nicety, formerly Exxon Valdez, Exxon Mediterranean, SeaRiver Mediterranean, S/R Mediterranean, Mediterranean, and Dong Fang Ocean is an oil tanker that gained notoriety after running aground in Prince William Sound spilling hundreds of thousands of barrels of crude oil in Alaska...
ran aground on Bligh Reef
Bligh Reef
Bligh Reef, sometimes known as Bligh Island Reef, is a reef off the coast of Bligh Island in Prince William Sound, Alaska. This was the location of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill. After the incident, US Code 33 § 2733 mandated the operation of an automated navigation light to prevent future...
, spilling eleven million gallons of crude oil into the waters of Prince William Sound
Prince William Sound
Prince William Sound is a sound off the Gulf of Alaska on the south coast of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is located on the east side of the Kenai Peninsula. Its largest port is Valdez, at the southern terminus of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System...
. The Exxon Valdez oil spill
Exxon Valdez oil spill
The Exxon Valdez oil spill occurred in Prince William Sound, Alaska, on March 24, 1989, when the Exxon Valdez, an oil tanker bound for Long Beach, California, struck Prince William Sound's Bligh Reef and spilled of crude oil. It is considered to be one of the most devastating human-caused...
was the largest in United States history.
VECO was responsible for large parts of the spill's clean up, hiring 2,500 workers to clean up the environmental disaster.
Voice of the Times
VECO's Ex CEO, Bill Allen, paid for the publishing of the "Voice of the Times," a half page counterpoint to the Anchorage Daily NewsAnchorage Daily News
The Anchorage Daily News is a daily newspaper based in Anchorage, Alaska, in the United States. It is often referred to colloquially as either "the Daily News" or "the ADN"...
which was published within the pages of the latter. The Voice of the Times is what remains of the Anchorage Times
Anchorage Times
The Anchorage Times was a daily newspaper published in Anchorage, Alaska that became known for the pro-business political stance of longtime publisher and editor, Robert Atwood. Competition from the McClatchy-owned Anchorage Daily News forced it out of business in 1992.-History:The Anchorage Times...
, a newspaper which went out of business due to competition from the Anchorage Daily News in 1992.
In accordance with an agreement reached between the former editors of the Anchorage Times and the Anchorage Daily News, space was provided for the Times editors to provide a counterpoint to the Anchorage Daily News. From 1992 until 2002, the Anchorage Daily News provided this space for free. In 2002 the agreement was renewed for five years, but the "Voice of the Times" was required to pay for the space as though it was advertising.
On May 9, 2007 the Anchorage Daily News announced it would end the arrangement at months end, and it would cease publishing the Voice of the Times. Although ADN publisher Mike Sexton said the decision had been made a week prior, he was quoted a few days before this announcement as saying the situation was still under review. The Voice of the Times now exists as a blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
.
Alaska Legislature corruption scandal
On August 31, 2006 officers with the Federal Bureau of InvestigationFederal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
and the Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
raided the offices of several prominent members of the Alaska Legislature
Alaska Legislature
The Alaska Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is a bicameral institution, consisting of the lower Alaska House of Representatives, with 40 members, and the upper house Alaska Senate, with 20 members...
. Raided were the offices of Sen. John Cowdery
John Cowdery
John Cowdery is a Republican member of the Alaska Senate, representing the O District since 2001. He was previously a member of the Alaska House of Representatives from 1982 through 1984, and from 1997 through 2000.-External links:...
(R-Anchorage), Senate President Ben Stevens
Ben Stevens
Ben Stevens is an American politician and former President of the Alaska State Senate. He is a Republican and the son of former United States Senator Ted Stevens, the longest serving Republican in United States Senate history.- Career :...
(R-Anchorage), Rep. Vic Kohring
Vic Kohring
Vic Kohring is a former Alaska State legislator. He was elected to seven consecutive two-year terms in the Alaska House of Representatives, beginning in 1994. Kohring represented District 14, Wasilla....
(R-Wasilla), Rep. Bev Masek (R-Willow), Rep. Bruce Weyhrauch
Bruce Weyhrauch
Bruce Weyhrauch is a former legislator in the Alaska State House representing Juneau. In May 2007, Weyhrauch, along with fellow legislators Pete Kott and Vic Kohring were charged in connection with a scandal involving oilfield service company VECO attempting to buy government favors in Alaska...
(R-Juneau), Sen. Don Olson (D-Nome), and Rep. Pete Kott
Pete Kott
Peter "Pete" Kott is a former Republican state representative for District 17 serving Eagle River, Alaska, in the Alaska Legislature for seven terms, from 1993 until 2007. He was Speaker of the House during his sixth term in 2003-2004...
(R-Eagle River). The investigation involved allegations of illegal gifts to law makers from VECO. Senator Olson was never charged but it was found he had turned down illegal campaign assistance.
Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin
Sarah Louise Palin is an American politician, commentator and author. As the Republican Party nominee for Vice President in the 2008 presidential election, she was the first Alaskan on the national ticket of a major party and first Republican woman nominated for the vice-presidency.She was...
is another Alaskan politician that received campaign support from VECO. The International Herald Tribune
International Herald Tribune
The International Herald Tribune is a widely read English language international newspaper. It combines the resources of its own correspondents with those of The New York Times and is printed at 38 sites throughout the world, for sale in more than 160 countries and territories...
reported on September 3, 2008, "As Palin campaigned unsuccessfully in 2002 to become lieutenant governor, she received contributions from executives at VECO Corp., a powerful Alaska oil field services company." http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/09/03/america/CVN-Palin.php The questionable donations totaled $4,500, over 10% of all her funding that year. Allen admitted that he had given executives money to be contributed in his "bonus" program though he denied knowing that the laundering was illegal.
Also named in the search warrants were VECO officers Bill J. Allen
Bill Allen (corporate CEO)
William J. "Bill" Allen is the co-founder and former CEO of the Alaska oilfield services company VECO Corporation. VECO Corporation was an Alaska-based oil pipeline service and construction company. Bill Allen was born in New Mexico and at the age of 16 left for the oil fields of Alaska to become...
, Rick Smith and Pete Leathard.
VECO executives indicted, plead guilty
On May 7, 2007, VECO CEO Bill AllenBill Allen (corporate CEO)
William J. "Bill" Allen is the co-founder and former CEO of the Alaska oilfield services company VECO Corporation. VECO Corporation was an Alaska-based oil pipeline service and construction company. Bill Allen was born in New Mexico and at the age of 16 left for the oil fields of Alaska to become...
and Vice President for Community & Government Affairs Rick Smith pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Anchorage to charges of extortion, bribery, and conspiracy to impede the Internal Revenue Service.
In addition to the three politicians arraigned on May 4, the new court filings mention illegal payments made to a former state senator, named as "Senator B" in court documents, who received over $200,000 from VECO Corp. over several years, income which Senator B reported as "consulting fees." In the May 7 guilty pleas by Allen and Smith, they admit that the only work done by Senator B in exchange for the funds was advancing VECO's agenda in the state legislature. The only former state senator who matches the information contained in court documents about Senator B is former Senator Ben Stevens
Ben Stevens
Ben Stevens is an American politician and former President of the Alaska State Senate. He is a Republican and the son of former United States Senator Ted Stevens, the longest serving Republican in United States Senate history.- Career :...
(R-Anchorage), son of U.S. Senator Ted Stevens
Ted Stevens
Theodore Fulton "Ted" Stevens, Sr. was a United States Senator from Alaska, serving from December 24, 1968, until January 3, 2009, and thus the longest-serving Republican senator in history...
(R-Alaska). To date, Ben Stevens has not been indicted. Another state senator discussed in the court documents who later pled guilty, was identified as "Senator A." He was John Cowdery. On 3/12/09 ex-state representative Beverly Masek pled guilty to taking $4,000 in bribes from Allen
Allen, Smith resign
On May 11, 2007 the VECO Corporation announced that CEO Bill Allen and Vice President for Community & Government Affairs Rick Smith had resigned from the corporation. Allen was succeeded as chairman of the board by his daughter, Tammy Kerrigan.http://www.ktuu.com/Global/story.asp?S=6505325Federal bribery investigations
On July 24, 2007, the Wall Street Journal reported that Representative Don YoungDon Young
Donald Edwin "Don" Young is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1973. He is a member of the Republican Party.Young is the 6th most senior U.S. Representative and the 2nd most senior Republican Representative, as well as the 2nd most senior Republican in Congress as a whole...
was under federal investigation for possibly taking bribes, illegal gratuities or unreported gifts from VECO. Between 1996 and 2006, Young received $157,000 from VECO employees and its political action committee. In the first half of 2007, Young spent more than $250,000 of campaign contributions for legal fees.
Alaska State House representatives Pete Kott
Pete Kott
Peter "Pete" Kott is a former Republican state representative for District 17 serving Eagle River, Alaska, in the Alaska Legislature for seven terms, from 1993 until 2007. He was Speaker of the House during his sixth term in 2003-2004...
, Bruce Weyhrauch
Bruce Weyhrauch
Bruce Weyhrauch is a former legislator in the Alaska State House representing Juneau. In May 2007, Weyhrauch, along with fellow legislators Pete Kott and Vic Kohring were charged in connection with a scandal involving oilfield service company VECO attempting to buy government favors in Alaska...
and Vic Kohring
Vic Kohring
Vic Kohring is a former Alaska State legislator. He was elected to seven consecutive two-year terms in the Alaska House of Representatives, beginning in 1994. Kohring represented District 14, Wasilla....
were all charged with federal crimes as part of the investigation into VECO.
On May 29, 2007, the Anchorage Daily News
Anchorage Daily News
The Anchorage Daily News is a daily newspaper based in Anchorage, Alaska, in the United States. It is often referred to colloquially as either "the Daily News" or "the ADN"...
reported that the FBI and a federal grand jury were investigating an "extensive" remodeling project at Senator Ted Stevens
Ted Stevens
Theodore Fulton "Ted" Stevens, Sr. was a United States Senator from Alaska, serving from December 24, 1968, until January 3, 2009, and thus the longest-serving Republican senator in history...
' home in Girdwood
Girdwood, Alaska
Girdwood is an unincorporated year-round ski resort community within the Municipality of Anchorage in the U.S. state of Alaska. It lies in a valley in the Chugach Mountains near the end of the Turnagain Arm of Cook Inlet, 36 miles southeast of Anchorage proper.It is surrounded by seven permanent...
, Alaska. The remodeling work, organized by VECO, more than doubled the size of the home (public records show that the home is now 2471 square feet (229.6 m²) and valued at about $441,000). The repairs could have cost anywhere between $130,000 and 250,000, and the payments Ted Stevens paid were about $160,000. Stevens' Alaska home was raided by the FBI and IRS on July 30, 2007. Stevens was indicted by a federal grand jury
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
on July 29, 2008 on seven counts alleging that Stevens received hundreds of thousands of dollars in gifts that he did not declare on his US Senate financial disclosure forms. Stevens was convicted on all seven of these charges on October 27, 2008. All the convictions were vacated on April 7, 2009 due to gross prosecutorial misconduct
Prosecutorial misconduct
In jurisprudence, prosecutorial misconduct is a procedural defense; via which, a defendant may argue that they should not be held criminally liable for actions which may have broken the law, because the prosecution acted in an "inappropriate" or "unfair" manner. Such arguments may involve...
.
CH2M HILL acquisition
In May 2007 VECO began negotiations with Colorado-based CH2M HILLCH2M Hill
CH2M Hill is an American-based global provider of engineering, construction, and operations services for corporations, nonprofits, and federal, state, and local governments. The firm is headquartered in Meridian, an unincorporated area of Douglas County, Colorado in the Denver-Aurora Metropolitan...
to acquire VECO. http://www.adn.com/money/story/8898490p-8798382c.html. The deal was finalized in September 2007, with CH2M HILL integrating VECO into its operations.http://www.ch2m.com/corporate/markets/energy/veco.asp