WHISTLEBLOWERS: GUARD UNIT MONEY FIGHT DRUGS SPENT ON PERSONAL ITEMS, GIFTS

"I was pretty much instructed what to buy. I was aware that a lot of stuff
was not kosher," the former unit member said.

JACKSON - Certain officers at a Mississippi Air National Guard unit spent
money earmarked for drug fighting on personal items and gifts, sources
close to an investigation into activities at the Meridian-headquartered
unit say.

The items in question, purchased in 2000 with money meant for the C-26
counter-drug unit of the 186th Air Refueling Wing, included personal
digital computers, telephones, leather chairs, travel bags and wall prints.

The allegation is one of dozens against former and current officers of the
186th that are being investigated by a Florida Air National Guard judge
advocate. The latest probe stems from an earlier investigation that
documented 16 cases of corruption, records falsification and racism.

Col. Joe "Jody" Bryant Jr. turned over the charges of improper spending
along with hundreds of other documents to investigators. He and a former
member of the counter-drug unit said the purchases went against U.S. Air
Force policy. Whistleblowers say the purchases were gifts for Col. David
Weaver, the wing commander forced to resign after the first investigation;
Lt. Col. Thomas Temple, who retired after his name surfaced in the same
investigation; and some headquarters staff members.

"They were buying gifts with government money," Bryant said.

According to documents obtained by The Associated Press through the Freedom
of Information Act, $20,182.55 was spent using the C-26 unit's purchase
card between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30, 2000, the end of the federal fiscal year.
Most of the questionable purchases, totaling $3,599.17, were made in September.

A former member of the C-26 unit said he made some of those purchases but
asked not to have his name published for fear of reprisal. He said the
unit's commander, Lt. Col. Robert Earl Pierce, told him the money needed to
be spent before the fiscal year was up.

"I was pretty much instructed what to buy. I was aware that a lot of stuff
was not kosher," the former unit member said. On Sept. 14, three Compaq
iPAQ personal digital assistants were bought for $1,496.03; three leather
office chairs for $1,089; two pictures for $202 and nine travel bags for
$533.55. On Feb. 25, three cordless phones were bought for $278.59.

The leather chairs, the prints, two of the cordless phones and several of
the travel bags were delivered to officers and staff at headquarters and
not used for C-26 operations, the whistleblowers allege.

Everybody working in the unit used the Compaq PDAs, but two were purchased
for officers outside the unit, the one-time unit member alleged.

None of the purchases was marked as a disputed item on the purchase card log.

Repeated attempts to reach Pierce at offices in Jackson and Meridian were
unsuccessful. Pierce, a former employee of the Mississippi Bureau of
Narcotics who now heads the Mississippi Guard's federal counter-drug
programs, had denied wrongdoing in a lawsuit he and 11 others filed
challenging the motives behind the initial investigation.

The suit charges Bryant and Col. Dave Bertholf, the lead investigator of
the first probe, with slander, intentional infliction of emotional distress
and injurious falsehood. Pierce is also mentioned in an internal MBN
investigation that spun off of the 186th probe. That internal MBN memo says
a confidential source told investigators that Pierce gave gifts of seized
weapons and aircraft parts from the MBN's Meridian office, located with the
C-26 unit.

Maj. Danny Blanton, a spokesman for the Guard, said that because the
investigation into the 186th was ongoing, he could not comment on specific
allegations.

"All of these allegations are being investigated very thoroughly," Blanton
said.

The current probe is looking into allegations of misconduct against at
least 15 current and former officers in the unit. Blanton has said the
investigation is closer to completion, with investigating officer Col. Ken
Emmanuel conducting dozens of interviews last week in Meridian.