U.S. top Iraq inspector faces probes

WASHINGTON, Dec. 14 (UPI) -- The U.S. government has opened four probes into alleged overspending and mismanagement at the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction.

The FBI, the U.S. House of Representatives Oversight and Government Reform Committee, the Presidential Council on Integrity and Efficiency and the Army's Equal Employment Opportunity Office are each conducting investigations into allegations made by current and former staff working under Inspector General Stuart Bowen Jr., The Washington Post reported Friday.

The overspending allegations include claims that overtime policies allowed 10 of the office's staff members to take home more than $250,000 each in wages last year and concerns about oversight of a $3.5 million book project detailing the reconstruction of Iraq.

SIGIR staff members claimed Bowen and his deputy have engaged in mismanagement that includes improperly reading staff e-mail messages, the Post said.

The Post said the employee complaints accuse the office's leadership of firing a whistle-blower in retaliation and engaging in "sustained patterns of inappropriate behavior."