Vogel, Slade & Goldstein
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FORMER ARMORGROUP NORTH AMERICA DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS FILES FALSE CLAIMS ACT WHISTLEBLOWER RETALIATION LAW SUIT AGAINST ARMORGROUP

Executive Charges That ArmorGroup Discharged Him in Retaliation for Blowing the Whistle About Company's Inadequate Staffing and Equipment, Procurement of Counterfeit Goods, Abetting of Sex Trafficking in Kabul and other Violations of ArmorGroup's Contract with Department of State

Washington, D.C. James Gordon, former Director of Operations of ArmorGroup North America ("AGNA") today filed a whistleblower retaliation lawsuit under the False Claims Act in United States District Court for the District of Columbia, charging that ArmorGroup management retaliated against him for whistleblowing, internally and to the United States Department of State ( "DoS"), about illegalities committed by ArmorGroup in the performance of AGNA's contracts with the United States to provide security services at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan and at the U.S. Naval base in Bahrain.

Mr. Gordon, who was appointed as Director of Operations for AGNA in August 2007, was tasked with rectifying serious contract deficiencies the DoS had identified on July 19, 2007, in AGNA's performance of the U.S. Embassy contract that led DoS to conclude "that the security of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul [was] in jeopardy." The Complaint charges that during Mr. Gordon's seven-month tenure as Director of Operations, he investigated, attempted to stop, and reported to DoS a myriad of serious violations committed by ArmorGroup, including:

  • Severely understaffing the guard force necessary to protect the U.S. Embassy to such an extent that Mr. Gordon felt compelled to warn that "if one person gets sick or slips on a banana peel the whole thing falls apart like a cheap suit";
  • Hiring and retaining a Gurkha workforce to guard the U.S. Embassy, the vast majority of whom could not speak English, in violation of AGNA's contract with DoS, and misrepresenting the workforce's language qualifications to DoS;
  • Allowing AGNA managers and employees to frequent brothels notorious for housing trafficked women in violation of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act;
  • Deliberately withholding documents relating to violations of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act allegedly committed by AGNA's Program Manager and other AGNA employees when responding to a document demand from Congressman Henry Waxman on behalf of the Congressional Committee on Oversight and Government Reform;
  • Endangering the safety of the guard force during transport to and from the Embassy by attempting to substitute company-owned subpar, refurbished vehicles from Iraq rather than purchasing armored escort vehicles as promised to DoS;
  • Knowingly using funds to procure cheap counterfeit goods from a company in Lebanon owned by the wife of AGNA's Logistics Manager; and
  • Engaging in practices to maximize profit from the contract with reckless disregard for the safety and security of the guard force, the U.S. Embassy, and its personnel.

According to Mr. Gordon, “I am filing suit today to hold ArmorGroup accountable for the blatant disregard of its obligations to ensure the safety and security of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul.  In an industry where good people are required to face extreme risk on a daily basis it is essential that those companies who disregard the rules be removed as they not only endanger their own staff but also endanger the mission, all in order to increase profit.”

Debra S. Katz and Lisa Banks, attorneys at Katz, Marshall & Banks, LLP, along with Janet Goldstein and Robert Vogel at Vogel, Slade & Golsdstein, LLP, represent James Gordon.

"James Gordon's mission was to fulfill ArmorGroup's obligation to the State Department and protect the lives of everyone at the Embassy," said Goldstein. "However, he ran head on into ArmorGroup's plan to maximize profit by doing the job on the cheap, paper over numerous violations that Gordon sought to investigate and expose, and pray that nobody got killed in the process. ArmorGroup executives put profit above the safety and security of American lives in the middle of a country at war, and forced Gordon out when he tried to expose them."

Debra Katz, counsel for Mr. Gordon with the D.C. employment law firm Katz, Marshall & Banks added, "Mr. Gordon's lawsuit provides specific details how ArmorGroup executives not only failed to fulfill the contract, but also committed numerous violations including illegal foreign influence, abetting sex trafficking and withholding information from Congress and the State Department as required by law. In blowing the whistle on ArmorGroup, Mr. Gordon had to endure serious harassment and career-derailing retaliation. Through this lawsuit, we intend to redress the serious harms that he has suffered and to ensure that ArmorGroup's misconduct is exposed and condemned in a court of law."

Additional information about Mr. Gordon’s case can be found at www.kmblegal.com and www.vsg-law.com.