Veco Paid Employee For Stevens Renovations And FundraisersA newly-identified key player in the investigations of Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) and Rep. Don Young (R-AK), construction worker Robert Williams, told the AP about the testimony he gave a federal grand jury on his double-duty rolls while on the Veco payroll:
Williams said he was in charge of “special projects” for VECO founder Bill Allen, and the renovation of Stevens’ home was one such project. Others included working three or four fundraisers for Stevens while on the clock with VECO. Federal elections laws prohibit candidates from accepting donations or free services from corporations.
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Unlike other VECO employees, Williams did not itemize his time sheets with job codes so customers could be billed. When working on one of Allen’s pet projects, Williams just logged his hours and VECO made sure he was paid.“I never had any doubts about it until the FBI came down and served me with subpoenas,” Williams said in a telephone interview.
Williams said over the course of his 13 years with Veco he worked on a number of fundraisers for both Stevens and Rep. Don Young, including Young’s annual pig roast, that the FBI is now scrutinizing.
Williams remembered that investigators were very interested in Stevens’ home renovation, which he thought was legitimate at the time:
Williams testified about the house project before a federal grand jury in Anchorage. He couldn’t remember the total cost of the renovation, but said the Justice Department seemed to already know more about the project than he did.Investigators were “very thorough” and had numerous documents and bills associated with the house, he said.
“I thought everything was on the up and up,” Williams said. “I’m disappointed with the way things turned out and I’m sorry for Ted.”