Statement of Deputy Inspector General Charles K. Edwards

DHS Office of Inspector General sent this bulletin at 07/02/2013 01:04 PM EDT

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                     For Information Contact:
Tuesday, July 2, 2013                                                Office of Public Affairs                                                                     
                                                                                         E:dhs-oig.officepublicaffairs@oig.dhs.gov ll 202.254.4100

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Statement of Deputy Inspector General Charles K. Edwards

 

Late last week, while on a family vacation in India, both I and the news media were in receipt of a letter from the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Subcommittee on Financial and Contracting Oversight.  In that letter, Chairman Claire McCaskill and Ranking Member Ron Johnson requested information about allegations made anonymously against me charging misconduct and abuse of position.

 

I am very disturbed that false allegations have been made against me, but more importantly, I am very concerned that this matter may negatively impact the important oversight work of the Office of Inspector General.

 

I will defend myself against these personal attacks. Allegations can be lodged anonymously by anyone. Truth can be distorted to misrepresent circumstances and make them appear improper when they are not.  Sadly, those persons that choose to anonymously attack me honor no boundaries, but I must follow Federal rules and not publicly disclose protected information as I present my defense.

 

Most of the allegations included in the Subcommittee’s letter are not new. Many have been the subject of Freedom of Information Act requests, media reports, and Congressional inquiry. Similar allegations were reviewed and dismissed by various oversight bodies, including the Council on Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE).  Senator Johnson himself previously requested most of this same information and was provided with a myriad of OIG records several months ago. As required by law, some of those records were redacted to protect individuals’ privacy rights.

 

I am confident that the allegations will be shown for what they are – completely without merit. 

 

-- Chennai, India, July 2, 2013

 

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