Kristi Noem, her rumored lover Corey Lewandowski and associates at Homeland Security are facing a ‘wide-ranging’ criminal investigation over the rewarding of billions of dollars in no-bid contracts, senior DHS sources tell the Daily Mail.
The Homeland Security Inspector General has launched the investigation, sending notices to dozens of people involved in approving the contracts, including many in Noem’s inner circle, sources said.
These officials are being ordered to preserve all communications including documents, text messages, emails and phone records, the Daily Mail can reveal.
‘It’s long overdue and much needed,’ one senior DHS official familiar with the matter said. ‘There has been too much shady stuff done under their watch.’
Beyond the Bison
Notices are being sent to current and former employees, among them Noem and her top adviser Lewandowski who were forced out earlier this month by Trump after the secretary was grilled over a controversial $220 million ad campaign. One commercial featured her galloping on a horse beside a stampeding herd of bison at Mount Rushmore.
However, the criminal probe is not limited to the ads and investigators are digging into a ‘wide range’ of other contracts personally approved by Noem’s office, senior DHS officials tell the Daily Mail.
The investigation is ongoing and no crime has been alleged.
If the investigation concludes there was criminal activity involving the approval of the contracts, then the case would be referred to the Department of Justice in Washington or any number of US Attorney’s offices for prosecution.
Circumventing Oversight
The probe lands just as Markwayne Mullin was sworn in alongside Trump at the White House on Tuesday afternoon, replacing Noem as Homeland Security Secretary.
The DHS contracting process has come under public scrutiny in recent weeks over concerns about possible influence peddling and conflicts of interest.
Some DHS contractors told White House officials that Lewandowski allegedly solicited ‘pay to play’ fees in exchange for helping secure or expand contracts, a tactic sources told the Daily Mail was widely referred to as ‘the Lewandowski tax.’
Lewandowski, a former special government employee, has denied any wrongdoing.
Noem and Lewandowski maintained tight control over the approval of all six-figure contracts. Their insistence on sole authorization created months-long backlogs, delaying contracts tied to FEMA disaster relief and construction of Trump’s border wall.
But DHS sources tell the Daily Mail this also allowed the pair to circumvent standard oversight.
The Inspector’s Report
When contacted for a response on the investigation, Lewandowski replied, ‘Fake news.’
The Daily Mail has contacted the White House, Homeland Security, and Noem for comment.
The DHS Office of Inspector General is an independent federal watchdog tasked with investigating fraud, waste, abuse and misconduct. The office is led by Joseph Cuffari, one of a small group of inspectors general to keep their posts after Trump fired 17 at the start of his second term.
Cuffari has told lawmakers on Capitol Hill that Noem ‘systematically obstructed’ eleven of his prior investigations.
A senior administration official told the Daily Mail that Lewandowski also unsuccessfully tried to get Cuffari fired on multiple occasions before leaving DHS.
State Department Exodus
Mullin has publicly stated that he looks forward to working with Cuffari.
Last week, ten of Noem’s closest advisers and staffers, including her three deputy chiefs of staff, left Homeland to join the State Department, where they will assist her in her new role as special envoy for the Shield of the Americas.
Noem personally supplied the White House with the names of staffers she wanted to bring with her, a White House official told the Daily Mail.
Some of the officials Noem handpicked to follow her to the State Department are now caught up in the IG’s criminal probe.
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