Once, he recalls, an environmental inspector claimed that AES had stored rock and soil it had removed from its mine without proper authorization.

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In 2007, the Justice Department's inspector general found widespread violations in the FBI's use of the letters, including demands without proper authorization and information obtained in non-emergency circumstances.

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The problem, according to the Department of Justice, is that KBR did not obtain proper authorization for arming subcontractors, and the private security contractors it used were not registered with the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior.

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