Misspent Homeland Security Money

We mentioned the vapor tracer briefly in our initial report, in association with CalWatch.  The new consortium of investigative reporters poured over inspection reports by the California Office of Homeland Security and found many examples of mismanagement and waste.  My personal favorite was one local agency that tried to use homeland security money to buy a lawnmower.

When we were researching that report, we asked the AC Transit Security Director about the vapor tracers his agency bought.  Larry Perea answered, "Oh yeah, I have one right here in my desk."  Of course, we wondered why it would be in his desk and not out with officers on the street who would be checking buses for explosives.  One question lead to another -- Perea backed out of an interview and demonstration of his vapor tracer -- and we realized the devices have never been used in a real-life situation.  In fact, the bomb squads to whom Perea gave the devices refuse to use them, for a simple reason:  you have to get very close to a bomb for the vapor tracer to get a reading.  It makes more sense to send a bomb-sniffing dog or a robot to do the job.

Here's the brochure on the vapor tracer made by General Electric and, thanks to our colleagues at CalWatch, here are the reports from the California Office of Homeland Security that are critical of the vapor tracer purchase. 

 

MUNI's Broken Surveillance Cameras

These are statistics that Muni’s lawyers didn’t want you to see. The video surveillance cameras on twenty-two percent of the city’s buses and light rail were completely broken, thirty percent were listed as “partially functional”, and only forty-eight pecent of the buses and light rail in Muni’s fleet had fully working cameras, as of last month.

*** Update at 5:10pm:  Muni has just released the documents -- one titled "Sensitive Security Information" gives the overall breakdown of numbers.  The other is Muni boss Nat Ford's memo to the MTA Board that outlines the various ways the surveillance systems have broken down.***

Mortgage Fraud Riches

The man at the center of a statewide real estate scheme isn’t talking to us – we’ve now caught up to Jim McConville twice during our investigations; the latest, at small claims court in Fremont. He pushed me a couple times and stepped on my foot, but didn't say a thing.  So, we’ve had to learn about his case from talking to former investors and checking court documents.  Here are two of the more interesting ones.

 

First, Jack Thomas’ declaration.  Thomas is a contractor who fixed up many of McConville’s condos.  He also worked on the 85-acre ranch in the Castro Valley Hills McConville built; it was foreclosed on and auctioned off yesterday.  Thomas filed a lawsuit asking for $7,500 in back wages.  In a declaration, Thomas describes some of the riches he says McConville kept at the ranch -- among them, two Lamborghinis, a Hummer and various classic cars; an expensive art collection, antiques, pool tables, arcade machines, a comic book collection and “a life-size rubberized statue of the ‘Predator’ character” from the movie.

 

In a declaration in support of Andy Narraway’s lawsuit against McConville, a former property manager for McConville includes a list of the classic cars he stored at the ranch.  McConville built several buildings with garages to house the twenty vehicles, including the Lamborghinis, a couple of classic Mustangs, GTO’s, a 1966 Cobra and the Hummer.

 

We know the FBI is investigating.  We’ll keep track and get back to you when/if something happens.