General William "Kip" Ward, used military vehicles to shuttle his wife on shopping trips, a US Defence Department report says. Source: AP
SCANDAL has engulfed yet another top US general with the former head of US Africa Command accused of spending thousands of dollars on lavish travel and other unauthorised expenses, the Pentagon said today.
US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta, who is currently in Australia with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, has demoted General William "Kip'' Ward and ordered him to repay the US government $82,000.
Investigators found Ward used his rank as a four-star general to shuttle his wife on shopping sprees and once accepted a defence contractor's gift of going backstage to meet actor Denzel Washington.
Panetta stripped Ward of a star, which means that he will now retire as a three-star lieutenant general.
All in all, it's been a tough week for America's generals with the fallout from the David Petraeus cheating scandal continuing.
The general and his wife Joyce racked up hotel bills with several staff members at New York's iconic Waldorf Astoria hotel on Park Avenue. Picture: New York Post
A report by the Defence Department inspector general found that Ward used military vehicles to shuttle his wife on shopping trips and to a spa and billed the government for a refueling stop overnight in Bermuda, where the couple stayed in a $750 suite. The report detailed lengthy stays at lavish hotels for Ward, his wife and his staff members, and the use of five-vehicle motorcades when he traveled to Washington.
The report also said Ward and his wife, Joyce, accepted dinner and Broadway show tickets from a government contractor during a trip during which he went backstage to meet actor Denzel Washington. The couple and several staff members also spent two nights at the Waldorf Astoria hotel.
A meeting with Hollywood superstar Denzel Washington proved too hard to resist for General William "Kip" Ward who accepted a defence contractor's gift of going backstage to meet the actor.
Other charges were that Ward often extended his overseas trips - particularly those to the US - for personal reasons, resulting in "exponential'' increases in costs.
Although the report included responses from Ward to a number of the allegations, investigators often found records and statements that contradicted his explanations. At one point, Ward defended the Bermuda layover, saying that it came up on short notice, which is why his security team had to stay there longer. The report found records showing that the layover had been planned for at least four days in advance.
A common theme running through the report was Ward's insistence that his wife travel with him at government cost, even though it was often not authorised and she performed few official duties. It said he also routinely stayed in high-priced suites in luxury hotels rather than in standard rooms or less expensive locales.
A spokesman for Ward said that the general "has never been motivated by personal gain and fulfilled each and every mission assigned to him and served his country and the men and women assigned to his commands with distinction.''
It's been a bad week for US generals with Washington still reeling from the fallout of the David Petraeus scandal after the former CIA director resigned over his extramarital affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell.
"While General Ward is not perfect he has always been guided by his faith in God and the belief that there is no greater honor as a patriot than to lead those who choose to serve our nation in the armed forces,'' spokesman Chris Garrett said in a statement.
Secretary of the Army John McHugh concurred with Panetta's decision, Pentagon press secretary George Little said in a statement.
"Secretary Panetta insists that leaders within the Department of Defence exemplify both professional excellence and sound judgment,'' Little said. "The secretary is committed to ensuring that any improprieties or misconduct by senior officers are dealt with swiftly and appropriately.''
Retiring as a three-star will cost Ward about $30,000 a year in retirement pay - giving him close to $208,802 a year rather than the $236,650 he would receive as a four-star general.
Then there was Jill Kelley, the socialite whose complaint to the FBI over threatening emails uncovered the Petraeus scandal. But not before she allegedly received emails from a shirtless FBI agent.
Army General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had urged Panetta to allow Ward to retire at his full four-star general rank, according to defense officials.
The allegations, coming after a 17-month investigation, have delayed Ward's planned April 2011 retirement. And they were an embarrassing end note to his career, since he had claimed a place in history as the military's first commander of Africa Command.
General John Allen, the top US commander in Afghanistan, also became engulfed in the Petraeus scandal after revelations that he exchanged flirtatious emails with Jill Kelley and intervened in a messy custody dispute on behalf of her twin sister.
The scandal surrounding David Petraeus widened to include a top U.S. commander and is raising questions about their links to Florida resident Jill Kelley.
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