◆ SpookStack

MURTHA, FROM PAGE A-1' rewarding favorable treat- ment in connection with ‘K’s’ subcontract relating to a gov- ermment prime contract.” The information does not identify “K.” In April 2006, Mr. Murtha, D-Johnstown, touted a rela- tionship between Coherent and Kuchera Defense Sys- tems. Coherent, of Doyle- stown, Bucks County, work- ing with Kuchera Defense’ Systems in Windber, Som- erset County, had obtained more than $30 million in 14 prime contracts for high-tech tools for the military. - A news release from the congressman announced that the two were “working. virtually as one company.” Coherent employees designed, developed and tested the products, while . Kuchera did the manufactur- ing. in. August 2007, Coherent becamea subsidiary of Argon ST for approximately $20 mil- lion, including debt assump- tion. Mr. [anieri worked for Argon, based in Fairfax, Va., as the vice president for busi- ness development but left the company late last summer. When contacted at his home in Doylestown last night, Mr. [anieri referred questions to his attorney, . ; who did not return a call seeking comment. Yesterday’s criminal information marked the first charges arising out of inves- tigations into companies receiving defense earmarks — contracts targeted to spe- cific projects and firms, usu- ally at the behest of powerful members of Congress. The charge comes six months after federal agents raided the offices of Kuchera Defense Systems and Kuchera Industries, a subur- ban Johnstown technology firm. At the time of the raid, fed- eral agents also searched the homes of the company’s two owners, Ronald and William. Kuchera. ; Both firms have relied in the past on defense con- tracts directed through the office of Mr. Murtha, who did not immediately respond to requests for comment last The congressman has not. been officially named as a target of the ongoing investi- gation. | i \ ” At the same time, he has been roundly criticized by some Republican House col- leagues, as well as various © reform groups, for his prac- tice of directing billions in defense contracts to compa- nies that set up shop in his district. Since 2003, Mr. Ianieriand . colleagues at Coherent have directed a total of $72,950 in political donations to a num- ‘- ber of congressmen, both Democrats and Republicans, with ties to the defense indus- Twenty percent of that amount — $14,000 —- was given either to Mr. Murtha's re-election campaigns or to his political action commit- tee. When Coherent entered into the defense market in 2006, the company hired KSA Consulting, a Washington- based firm that onceemployed Mr. Murtha’s brother, Kit, and which is headed by a trio of partners that includes Carmen Scialabba, a onetime Neither KSA, Kit Murtha nor Mr. Scialabba has been implicated in any wrongdo- ing in the ongoing probe. As a joint team of FBI and IRS agents probes Kuchera, the federal Justice Depart- ment is continuing a sepa- rate investigation into the defunct lobbying firm PMA. Created by Paul Maglioc- chetti, a Pittsburgh native who worked as a staff mem- ber on the House Appropria- tions defense subcommittee, the firm became the foremost lobbyist for defense dollars. Federal agents searched PMA’s offices in suburban Washington in November, carting away records. Since that time, one mem- ber. of the Appropriations Committee, U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky, D-Ind., has been subpoenaed in connection with that investigation. Mr. Visclosky's former chief of staff was among a number of former congressional employees who joined PMA in its heyday. Oe