Accused Of Providing Counterfeit Helicopter Parts To The U.S. Military

A defense contractor accused of providing counterfeit parts for helicopters and trucks to the U.S. military was searched Tuesday by federal authorities. The search of Kustom Products Inc. in Coos Bay, OR, focused on purchase orders and sample parts that may have been prototypes for the counterfeits.

The search came following interviews in the past two months with a former company employee, according to the Associated Press. Josh Kemp, who had been a purchasing agent with Kustom Products, faces federal charges in the case. He and company owner Harold Ray Bettencourt II, along with others in the Bettencourt family, are accused of supplying the military with phony parts in fulfilling a $7.5 million contract.

The alleged scheme was uncovered when an Army National Guard Maintenance technician found non-spec replacement lock nuts that were intended for use on the main rotor assemblies of Kiowa Warrior helicopters. Kemp told investigators that he considered the allegations accurate. In a sworn affidavit, he described company procedures that were counter to those claimed by Bettencourt. Kemp, who said he felt threatened by the Bettencourts, and his family are currently under the protection of the federal government.

The case is set to go to trial in late January.

(Kiowa Warrior photo from file)

FMI: www.ord.uscourts.gov