P. M. BRIEFING : Grumman Admits Unauthorized Use of Secret Pentagon Papers
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WASHINGTON — Grumman Corp., the nation’s 10th largest defense contractor, pleaded guilty to two criminal counts of unauthorized use of secret Pentagon documents, the Justice Department said today.
It said the company was ordered by a federal judge in nearby Alexandria, Va., to pay $2.5 million in fines and damages as part of the plea bargaining deal.
Grumman becomes the fourth major company to plead guilty in the long-running investigation, code-named “Operation Uncover,” into unauthorized trafficking and document-swapping by defense companies and military officials.
The other defense firms that have pleaded guilty are General Motors Co.’s Hughes Aircraft unit, the RCA unit of General Electric Co. and Boeing Co.
Justice Department officials said Grumman, an aircraft manufacturer based in Bethpage, N.Y., obtained secret military budget and planning documents from 1978 to 1985.
The company’s guilty plea had been widely expected after a former Grumman marketing analyst, Harry Kotellos, pleaded guilty Monday to illegally obtaining and distributing secret Pentagon budget reports in the early 1980s.
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