Four years ago an official with the National Park Service's Southern Campaign Parks Group conspired to spend $39,000 for a painting for Kings Mountain National Military Park in a deal structured in such a way that allowed the artist to avoid a federal garnishment to pay for back taxes, cover a debt owed by the artist, and send a commission to a friends group, according to an investigation.
While the Office of Inspector General referred the case to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina, that office declined to prosecute the matter. OIG also sent its report to P. Daniel Smith, the de facto director of the National Park Service, for "any action deemed appropriate."
The OIG report said the deal was structured in such a way to use an unnamed "friends group as a broker for the sale even though the friends group did not own the painting," the OIG determined. The arrangement also paid the friends group a $4,000 commission for setting up the deal, and sent $5,000 to "another friends group executive for a prior debt the artist owed him."
According to the artist, when the official initially proposed buying his painting, he told the official that he did not want a portion of the sale garnished by the Internal Revenue Service due to his back taxes. The artist told us that the official later called him back and proposed to purchase the painting through the friends group, adding that the $4,000 administrative fee paid to the friends group was the official’s idea.
The unidentified official with the Southern Campaign Parks Group, an umbrella arm to represent Ninety Six National Historic Site, Cowpens National Battlefield, Kings Mountain National Military Park, and the Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail, who came up with the scheme told OIG investigators, during a second interview, that he concocted it because the artist didn't want to sell the painting directly to the park because of his tax predicament.
"The official said he structured the purchase not to assist the artist with avoiding payment of back taxes, but because it was the only way the NPS could acquire the painting," the report noted. "The artist told us that he had refused to sell the painting to the official and the NPS based on his Federal tax issues and that the official told him the NPS would use the friends group to purchase the painting."
The investigation also found that contracting officials in the Park Service's Southeastern Regional Office not only were unaware of the scheme, but that procurement staff in the office had recommended that the purchase be made through an open competition "because market research identified other available vendors who could have provided a similar painting."
However, that staffer did not follow-up to see if her recommendation was followed because "she believed the contracting employee who processed the painting contract canceled the acquisition since that contracting employee did not submit a new purchase request."
The report did not describe the painting, which was purchased for the park's visitors' center. Kings Mountain is located in Blacksburg, South Carolina.
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Comments
This is another example of DOI OIG going after NPS leaders. It sounds to me that the person involved went to their Friends group to buy a painting, nothing more. NPS procurement and contracting has ground to an absolute standstill in most places across the service. Special purchases like this commonly go through a friends group or cooperating associating to reduce process and actually get something done. There is no law that prevents this but it clearly enrages the OIG.
Has anyone kept track on the number of reports that end with "DOJ declined prosecution?" As someone who has worked with US Attorneys and DOJ for over 20 years, they don't treat public corruption cases lightly. This report publically accuses this person of conspiring with someone, they likely didn't know, to avoid paying income taxes. Really?!? If they brought meaningful evidence forward, evidence enough to publicly condemn someone, then you would think they would vigorously prosecute that federal employee. There seems to be a pattern of unsubstantiated allegations made publicly by OIG that if they were able to prove, would result in prosecutions. I smell a fish!
Integrity means everything in the judicial system. I think the fact patterns they present are so flimsy and uncoordinated that no competent federal prosecutor would touch. That lack of integrity undermines the whole agency and destroys lives. How many more hides will NPS let OIG get before they call it what it is: vigilantism!
If you read the full report, and don’t believe that the actions described are unethical (if not a violation of law), then you must work for management in the NPS. As a federal employee, do you not think that conspiring to help someone avoid paying federal taxes is wrong? Using the friends group to launder purchases is just normal business? The additional payment of $4000 to the friends group to facilitate this doesn’t seem like a waste of government funds?
If you followed the report and believe it you must work for DOI OIG. Non-profit organizations often work as intermediaries in purchases all the time. Many land conservation organizations and cooporating associations purchase land and other things to hold to later sell to the NPS. There is often additional money in the sale price to cover administrative costs. This is done to speed the purchase, ensure preservation and allow use while the wheels grind through the procurement process. Universities charge huge administrative fees to manage research and conduct projects for NPS. 10% sounds like a bargain.
OIG has a way of twisting what is reviewed and approved by subject matter experts into great crimes that they report with hyperbole only to have DOJ decline prosecution. They ignore what they disagree with or doesn’t fit their narrative and don’t apply reasonable interpretations of the law. In our country we hold people innocent until proven guilty in court with evidence beyond a reasonable doubt. OIG thinks it’s the accuser,judge, jury and executioner all in one. Look at their language, they state it as fact. No evidence to back it up or prefaced with allegation, only their unsubstantiated accusations and no prosecution by professionals who see the entire case.
The employee admitted to setting up the purchase. If that’s illegal then most NPS employees are criminal, which they are not. They make a wild leap to the whole tax thing. If that conspiracy really existed then DOJ would have put them under the jail.
If OIG wasn’t immune to lawsuits themselves they would be sued for slander. They are out of control.
I cannot believe that people here are attacking the OIG office. They are doing their job to insure that due diligence in lawful and ethical actions are taken in the DOI. I for one am disgusted with the fact that a government official whose salary is paid by lawful tax payers would scheme to screw the government and other lawful tax paying citiizens. Shame on all of you defending this NPS official.
https://grandjurytarget.com/2017/02/28/oig-investigations-why-lawyers-an...
As someone who was close to this investigation and can with certainty provide the following highlights.
A giclee print of the Battle of Kings Mountain painting was purchased by the Superintendent using the federal SAM procurement system for approimately $800 which was hung in the Superindent's private office, away from interpretive public viewing.
The Artist owed back taxes to the IRS and due to connected computer systems, therefore, the giclee payment was heavily garnished.
When the original painting was purchased for $39,000, to avoid further garnishment, a NPS Friend's Group was engaged to serve as a proxy merchant to acquire the painting which was not previously in their possession, nor had this Friend's Group ever sold art or any other items to the NPS or third-party.
The Friend's Group received a Purchase Order from NPS Procurement Officer Sharpe, received payment and the original painting to the NPS Kings Mountain National Military Park.
When the Friend's Group received the federal funds, they remitted payment to the Artist which bypassed the SAM/IRS system on behalf of the Artist.
This scheme was expressly conceived for one singular purpose: to allow the Artist to escape recapture of owed federal income tax, period.
Upon intial testimony by the Superintendent, he misled the IG investigator who was clever in asking questions about which he already knew the answers.
Once the Superintendent realized he was caught in the IG snare, he confessed to the entire scheme and therefore the case was referred to the Attorney General's office for a determination.
As a Concerned Citizen who had intimate knowledge of this scheme, it was beyond any imaginable outcome that the AG would decline to prosecute, but the issue was not dropped.
The AG referred the case to the National Park Service for determination.
Fast forward to April of 2020, and news is circulating that justice will finally be done.
This scoundrel will hopefully never hold another job where he can ever again betray the trust of the American people.
For those of you who have affirmed the wrongdoing in your comments, I offer a hearty HUZZA.
For the rest of you, you have no idea of how wrong you are with your conspiracy theories.
I could not write the above without pinpoint, accurate knowledge of what occcured along and would like to acknowlege the outstanding assistance from Senator Mark Meadows office for their help "letting right be done" which I understand is finally about to be done.
Good luck to us all, and stay tuned.
Concerned Citizen and Historian