US army contractor in hot water over shocking Afghan video

By Sajad - 18 Oct 2012, 9:41 am

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A PRIVATE security company working for the US government in Afghanistan is in hot water after a video surfaced allegedly showing several of its employees drunk and on drugs, US broadcaster ABC reports.

In the video, a bare-chested man identified as a security manager working for Jorge Scientific hobbles around, barely conscious in front of the camera. A second man, who is said to be the company’s medical officer, stares into the lens, apparently under influence of drugs.

The contractor in the video, Virginia-based Jorge Scientific, has won almost $1 billion in U.S. government contracts. The company’s operations manual contains a “zero-tolerance for alcohol and drug use” and says all personnel must be on alert 24/7 for a possible terror attack, ABC News reports.

The military prohibits the use of alcohol or illegal drugs by U.S. contractors in Afghanistan under what is known as General Order Number One.

The alleged behavior went undetected by U.S. military officials and put American lives at risk. The whistle blowers revealed that if a terrorist attack had been made at this time, then employees would have been too ‘out of it’ to respond.

In a statement, Jorge Scientific – which has won almost $US1 billion in US government contracts – said it had taken ” decisive action to correct the unacceptable behaviour of a limited number of employees” and hired an independent investigation team to carry out a probe.

An unspecified number of employees, including a former senior executive and “several others mentioned in the complaint” no longer work for the company, it said.

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