Roanoke Times Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc. DATE: FRIDAY, December 3, 1993 TAG: 9312030109 SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-4 EDITION: METRO SOURCE: Associated Press DATELINE: SPACE CENTER, HOUSTON LENGTH: Short
The FBI's sting, dubbed Operation Lightning Strike, netted evidence that NASA employees and contractors took kickbacks and bribes and sold inside information, according to reports by two Houston television stations and NBC News. The report cited anonymous sources.
Johnson Space Center spokesman Harold S. Stall said officials were told about the investigation Wednesday by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's inspector general.
"We are cooperating fully," Stall said.
Both the FBI and the U.S. attorney's office in Houston refused to comment.
The government official told The Associated Press that the investigation implicated six or seven NASA employees, 12 to 24 non-NASA employees and a couple of corporations. The official spoke on condition of anonymity.
Discussions were being held with some of the targets to resolve the matter through pleas, the official said.
The investigation was active until news organizations publicized the probe this week, the source said.
by CNB