DOJ, Navy urge Camp Lejeune claimants to be on guard against scammers

Jan. 8 (UPI) -- The federal government on Monday issued warnings about scammers attempting to extract money and personal information from people filing claims or lawsuits under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act.

The Department of Justice and the U.S. Navy sent out alerts over "unscrupulous people and companies" seeking to exploit claimants in what could be one of the largest mass tort cases in United States history.

"Due to growing concerns over reports that unscrupulous people and companies are seeking or sought to obtain personal information from CLJA claimants or otherwise defraud them, the Justice Department and Navy advise claimants and their attorneys to be cautious of potentially fraudulent activity through telephone calls or email solicitations," the DOJ said in a statement.

Officials warned that "phishing" scammers are misrepresenting themselves as being from the U.S. government or military, asking people who have filed claims under the law to give up their personal information in emails or telephone calls.

"The Justice Department and the Navy will never request money or payment from you," the DOJ said.

The U.S. government has acknowledged its responsibility for environmental contamination at the North Carolina Marine Corps base that, over the course of decades, may have exposed as many as 1 million people to toxic water.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services determined in 2020 that exposures from the 1950s through 1985 to trichloroethylene (TCE), tetrachloroethylene (PCE), vinyl chloride, and other contaminants in the drinking water at Camp Lejeune likely increased the risk of cancers, adverse birth outcomes, and other adverse health effects of residents, civilian workers, Marines and Naval personnel.

The CLJA, signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2022, culminated a years-long struggle by ex-Marines, their families and civilian workers to gain legal recourse for those who drank contaminated water while living at Camp Lejeune between 1953 and 1987 -- a group that includes as many a 1 million people.

The measure allows people to file claims in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Northern Carolina, essentially overriding previously insurmountable legal hurdles such claimants faced in North Carolina state courts.

"The Justice Department and Navy are committed to reviewing every claim submitted and resolving every claim as fairly and efficiently as possible," the agencies said Monday in their scam warning.