The departure of thousands of U.S. defense contractors from Afghanistan by May 1 - set by a deal last year with the Taliban – may be “more devastating” to Afghan forces than an American troop pullout, a U.S. government watchdog warned on Wednesday.

The assessment by John Sopko, the special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction (SIGAR), came as the Biden administration presses the Taliban and Kabul to consider a proposed peace accord and reviews the February 2020 agreement amid surging violence.

Today, SIGAR published an inquiry into the Tarakhil Power Plant outside of Kabul. The letter inquires as to the power plant’s ability to supply Kabul with back-up power, given the $335 million investment made by USAID, and reports of electrical shortages in Kabul following avalanches in northern Afghanistan in February 2015.

The letter notes:

USAID has spent roughly $17 billion on reconstruction projects across Afghanistan since the U.S. invaded in 2001 to oust the Taliban regime. USAID’s success has been mixed. There have been undeniable gains in areas such as women’s rights, education, and healthcare.

Officials with USAID point to the 2014 Afghan presidential election as a step in the right direction, though it was bitterly contested over massive voter fraud. It was only settled with U.S. intervention that helped broker a power-sharing arrangement between President Ashraf Ghani and his election rival, Abdullah Abdullah, who was named to the newly created post of chief executive officer.

A former employee of a U.S. contractor was indicted today in the Eastern District of Texas for allegedly soliciting and accepting bribes in exchange for his influence in awarding U.S. government-funded contracts in Afghanistan, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney John Malcolm Bales of the Eastern District of Texas.

George E. Green, 57, of Carrollton, Texas, was charged with conspiracy to structure financial transactions to avoid currency transaction reporting requirements, wire fraud and receipt of bribes in connection with a program receiving federal funds.

It can be hard to keep track of your money. You charge stuff and misplace the receipts, you forget to record a check written and before you know it, $12-14 billion is unaccounted for in Iraq. Even then, after one authoritative source thinks he’s found some of it, no one bothers to go get it.

New information from the former Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGAR) Stuart Bowen, reported by perhaps the bravest journalist alive today, James Risen, shows that of the multi-billions of U.S. dollars cash literally shipped on pallets to Iraq in 2003, over one billion was traced into Lebanon (the other billions remain unaccounted for.)

The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) just released a top-level analysis of State Department reconstruction funding in Afghanistan. SIGAR found that State has obligated nearly $4 billion for Afghanistan reconstruction between the beginning of fiscal year 2002 and March 2013, more than two-thirds of which ($2.8 billion, or 69 percent) will go to just one company—DynCorp International.

The State Department’s reconstruction effort relies extensively on contractors. Nearly 90 percent of State’s reconstruction funding—$3.5 billion—was obligated in 55 contracts awarded to 19 recipients, the largest of which is DynCorp. Readers of this blog are probably familiar with DynCorp’s colorful history in Afghanistan, which includes instances of labor smuggling, weak performance and overpayments on a base support services contract, botched construction work on an Afghan Army garrison, and lawsuits filed by disgruntled subcontractors.

Keith Johnson, 46, and his wife, Angela Johnson, 44, of Maryville, Tenn., pleaded guilty today to their roles in a $9.7 million procurement fraud scheme. The Johnsons were indicted by a federal grand jury on conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud charges. Keith Johnson faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, and Angela Johnson faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison when they are sentenced on Feb. 14, 2014.

In a statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, Keith Johnson admitted to serving as the program manager for a Department of Defense contractor that operated a central maintenance facility (CMF) in Kabul, Afghanistan, and other facilities in that country to maintain and repair vehicles used by the Afghan National Army. In his position during 2007 to 2008, Keith Johnson was involved in purchasing vehicle parts from vendors.

The U.S. foreign aid agency spent nearly one-quarter of its $203 million budget for promoting stability in Afghanistan without issuing a single community grant as the program was designed to do, according to a watchdog report released on Monday. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction John F. Sopko found that the U.S. Agency for International Development spent almost $50 million of its Stability in Key Areas (SIKA) funding on workshops and training sessions instead of projects that would directly address instability in the region.

“It’s troubling that after 16 months, this program has not issued its first community grant,” Sopko said in a statement. “This looks like bad value for U.S. taxpayers and the Afghan people.”

Sarah Wines, who is USAID’s acting mission director for Afghanistan, said in a response to the report that the findings showed a “fundamental misunderstanding of SIKA’s purpose” and that the awarding of grants in and of itself is not the most important element of the program.

Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) investigation of large-scale corruption in Afghanistan led to the Department of Justice freezing more than $63 million in U.S. government funds, allegedly obtained through fraudulent means, located in bank accounts held in Afghanistan and in correspondent banks in the United States and abroad. The bank accounts are owned by Hikmatullah Shadman, an Afghan trucking contractor, who according to court documents allegedly defrauded the U.S. of more than $77 million by charging inflated prices for trucking contracts to deliver U.S. military supplies. These trucking contracts were allegedly obtained through bribes, kickbacks, and bid-rigging, according to court papers.

"We are determined to use all possible means to recover stolen taxpayer money. I'm proud of my agents, who worked closely with the Department of Justice on this groundbreaking achievement. This hits the criminals where it hurts. SIGAR will stop at nothing to follow this money trail wherever it leads," said Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction John F. Sopko.