Dedicated to educating the masses about truth, apathy, and ignorance...

WAS IT A SUICIDAL OR A TERRORIST BREACH OF SECURITY AT THE RENO AIRPORT? By Sam Dehné (Official Report from Reno Police "Blotter" at bottom.)

Citizens have a need, and a right, to know why dangerous breaches of security at the Reno Airport and at the Nevada Air National Guard are being covered up.
* At approximately 9:30 PM on 11 May, 1997, a man rammed through the Nevada Air National Guard security gate in a large vehicle, streaked past the closely parked C-130 war planes, and eventually worked his way onto the Reno Airport.
* The apparently crazed attacker, who initially must have been perceived to be a terrorist, then proceeded toward the terminal; before being driven back by airport security guards.
* The attacker then drove all about the Reno Airport causing havoc and substantial damage... before fleeing on foot and eventually being captured some 3 hours later.
Several airliners were forced to abort their landings in less than favorable weather - endangering the lives of hundreds of passengers.
* Squads of police officers were sent to the scene, and the man was eventually captured near the south end of the runway area.

Interesting so far? Click here to write to Sam Dehné

Much of this bizarre episode was video taped by faithfully tenacious investigator Michele Jackson... who also interrogated on-duty Reno police officers and the dispatcher.
The next day she, and Reno citizens, Jackie Decker and Gilbert Weikel, were informed of specific details by a Reno policeman who was not aware of the attempted cover-up of this near-tragic episode.

HOW LONG WILL THE COVER-UP LAST? By Sam Dehné

1. Why would the Airport and the Air National Guard cover up an attack against them that citizens should know about?
2. Does the attempted cover-up have anything to do with Reno Airport bureaucrats' fear that episodes like this will reduce the success of their ill-conceived scheme to build a military base in the middle of Reno?
3. Are they afraid of the adverse affect news of this attack could have on security funding and oversight? Are any FAA personnel in on the cover-up?
4. Where WERE the multi-million dollar security measures?
5. What would have happened if the purpose of this successful breach of security was to blow up some C-130s or maybe an airliner?
6. What if the attacker's intent was to commit suicide by ramming a landing airliner?
7. Was he crazed... was he a terrorist... could he perhaps be a disgruntled former airport employee?
Citizens have every right to know why a tragedy like this is being covered up.
All personnel involved in this cover-up must be held accountable.
When confronted with these charges of Airport corruption and cover-ups at the monthly meeting 5 days later, the Reno Airport Board of Directors claimed they did not know about it and had no comments or questions. They sat their with their mouths open. Dozens of airport employees in the audience shook their heads - NO.
An atmosphere of indifference permeated the Airport "Trustees"... who were appointed by the Reno city council to protect the safety and welfare of citizens.
Later, when this breach of airport security was reported to the another responsible agency, the FAA, it also showed no interest... while trying to down-play its dangerous significance.
This is the typically shameful type of violation that casts aspersions on the hundreds of other Reno Airport employees... most of whom are good honest workers.

When will this be investigated... or will it be swept under the rug with the rest of the Reno Airport's slippery meat?

Reno Police Report (2300 Hours)

South: GTA, BDW, Felony DUI, Felony DOP; Reno
International Airport.
We responded to the airport at the request of Airport
Police. A suspect, Michael Smith of Sutcliffe, Nv had
stolen a vehicle from Avis rent a car on National Guard
Way. Avis employees saw this and attempted to stop him.
One employee was hit on his hand by the suspect
vehicle. The suspect drove east on Nat. Guard way and
crashed the gate at the entrance to the Air National
Guard. Once on the base, the suspect hit a parked car
and other property. He then crashed another gate and
was now on airport property. The tower saw this and
called airport police. The suspect attempted to allude
and a pursuit was started. The suspect crashed into a
fence, ran over aviation signs and then fled on foot
toward Model Way. 30 minutes later we get a report of
an injured subject on Karen St. That suspect was
identified by 2 Avis employees and was arrested,
treated at Washoe Med and booked for the above charges.
Case 105386-97
Sgt. Schott on scene
Log entry by Sgt. Jones

[Editor's note: The Reno Airport is reported to be the 47th busiest in America. It is First in Mismanagement and Corruption... with "incidents like this happening all the time", according to its airport Director.]

This is the typically shameful type of violation that casts aspersions on the hundreds of other Reno Airport employees... who are good honest workers.
Citizens demand to know:
Why the security breach?
Why the cover-up?
Will this be investigated... or swept under the rug with the rest of the Reno Airport's slippery meat?

18 Beefy Charges of Wrong-Doing... and No Grand Jury. Where is the District Attorney?

INTRODUCTION by Guy Felton

The Sparks City Attorney last September requested a grand jury investigation into alleged improprieties at the airport. Here is a retype of the requesting letter ... as faxed to Webitor Internet USA.

The request for an investigation was denied. We can not help but judge that a full and credible investigation is justified by material presented in this letter ... and that the grand jury system in Washoe County itself cries to be fully investigated (most certainly not to be influenced in any way, shape, manner, or form by Washoe County District Attorney Richard Gammick).

From: The City of Sparks
Office of the City Attorney
September 13, 1996

To: Washoe County Grand Jury
Washoe County Court House
One South Sierra Street
Reno, NV 89501

Re: Request for Investigation of Allegations Concerning The Airport Authority of Washoe County

Dear Members of the Grand Jury:

During the month of August 1996, the Sparks City Council met with its two representatives on the Board of Trustees of the Airport Authority of Washoe County to evaluate their performance. During the course of this evaluation, the City Council and City staff were presented with facts and allegations concerning the Airport Authority. On August 26th the Sparks City Council adopted a motion directing the City Attorney to forward allegations of wrong doing concerning the Airport Authority to the Washoe County Grand Jury for possible investigation.

Subsequent to the August 26th meeting, I have received additional information concerning the alleged wrong doing at the Airport Authority and have met with several individuals who provided oral statements. In this letter I will present those items which I feel are most worthy of your consideration.
I respectfully submit these items to you and request your review.

Number 1: Airport Authority executives entered into a three (3) year contract with John Sande to lobby in the State Legislature. The cost for these services is $72,000. It is alleged that the Airport executives failed to notify the Trustees of the contract and falsely reported to the Nevada Department of Taxation that the contract was in the amount of $28,000.00.

Number 2: During the fiscal year 1995/96 the Airport Authority budgeted $219,000.00 for legal expenses. The actual expenditure was almost $700,000.00 which included settlements as well as legal expenses. This exceeded the authorized budget.

Number 3: The Airport Authority purchases Reno Air Race Association tickets which are given as favors to the FAA and other officials. The total expense is alleged to be in the neighborhood of $10,000.00 for these expenses. Is this a lawful use of public funds?

Number 4: Every year Executive Director Robert White holds a Christmas party at his home for politicians and influential people. The party is paid for by the Airport Authority.

Number 5: The Executive Director uses Airport Authority funds in the amount of $1,500.00 to $2,100.00 annually to send himself and certain airport Trustees to Dallas, Texas to play in a golf tournament to benefit the Ronald McDonald House.

Number 6: Director of Administration James Kitchel used his Airport Authority credit card for a personal dinner engagement with the parents of Kim Mathews, Airport Authority Marketing Assistant. Ms Mathews parents are neighbors of Mr Kitchel.

Number 7: The Airport Authority has allegedly engaged in an unfair business practice by refusing to lease space to Great America Airlines for $.17 per square foot. It leased the same area to Reno Air for $.13 per square foot.

Number 8: Approximately two (2) years ago, it is alleged that the Airport Authority entered into a contract with one or more airlines to build a jet bridge at the airport. To purchase the jet bridge from the private company, the Airport Authority gave credit against landing fees. The contractor on the job was a firm called Bridgetec. It is alleged that the arrangement for private construction was intended to bypass the requirements of Chapter 338 of the Nevada Revised Statutes regulating public works projects. The owner of Bridgetec wrote a letter to the Reno Gazette-Journal complimentary of Robert White.

Number 9: There is an alleged abuse of change orders regarding the construction of the baggage claim area. It is alleged that the original bid was in the amount of 2.2 million dollars, but the project ultimately cost 13 million dollars due to change orders. One of the change orders was in the amount of $500,000 for a ticket counter remodel which was outside the scope of the original bid. The contractor for the baggage claim area was Clark & Sullivan. It is alleged that an architectural firm named Casazza, Peetz, and Hancock filed a claim or lawsuit concerning the improper change order.

Number 10: A bill for $1,800.00 from Gold Coast Agency (private investigators) showed up in March of this year in James Kitchel's expenditures with no explanation of what it was for. A car owned by a woman named Jackie Decker was broken into and materials pertinent to the Airport Authority which were critical of management were removed from the car in March. The question has been asked as to whether the Gold Coast Agency was paid to take the documents in Ms Decker's possession.
In late August documents drafted by her attorney regarding Rewana Farms were taken from her unlocked car.

Number 11: In February 1995 Robert White hired the Phoenix, Arizona law firm of Brown & Bain to represent him at Airport Authority expense because he felt that newspaper articles had damaged him and the airport. Mr White wanted to investigate Trustee Tina Manoukian who he believed had leaked confidential information to the press. Mr White attempts to schedule a closed personnel session regarding Ms Manoukian. Ms Manoukian's lawyer, Cal Dunlap demanded that any such meeting be open and the issue died. Ms Manoukian paid her own attorney's fees.

Number 12: The Rewana Farms issue is one which has already received considerable media exposure. The Rewana Farms area abuts the southwestern boundaries of the airport property. It is situated south of the east-west runway. The current Nevada Air Guard Base is north of the east-west runway and south of the existing commercial terminal. It is alleged that several years ago a plan was drawn up to move the Air Guard to Rewana Farms so that the Airport Authority could expand its terminal and parking facilities to the south. The FAR Part 150 Master Plan prepared in October 1991 shows a military base at Rewana Farms. It is alleged that both the Airport Authority and the Air Guard have misled the public as to the true purpose of the Rewana Farms acquisition.
The Airport Authority has been acquiring property in the Rewana Farms area using 2.5 million dollars of federal money intended for noise-impacted property. The noise study which found Rewana Farms to be a noise-impacted area was based on the Air Guard's use of F-4 fighter jets. The conversion this year of the Air Guard operation to C-130 cargo planes has greatly reduced the noise impact and arguably made the noise study obsolete. The March 1996 Environmental Assessment prepared by the Air Guard for the C-130 conversion still shows the Air Guard staying at their base north of the east-west runway.

Number 13: The Airport Authority's tentative budget prepared March 4, 1996 showed no Air Guard expenses. The final budget was presented to the Board of Trustees at their June 1996 meeting. A new line item authorizing $400,000.00 for an Air Guard Relocation Master Plan Environmental Assessment was added to the budget shortly before the June meeting. According to Sam Dehne (phone 825-1398), the airport staff did not mention to the public or to the Board of Trustees that this new expense had been added to the budget. Mr Dehne contends that it would have been impossible for members of the public to learn of this new substantial expense when the budget was considered in June.

Number 14: It has been alleged that the Executive Director has arranged perks for the Trustees. They may receive airline tickets from airport tenants. They may also receive FAX and telephone answering machines for their homes. If airline tickets are given to Trustees, there may be a conflict of interest.

Number 15: At the April 25, 1996 Airport Trustees meeting, Trustee Geno Menchetti mentioned that he had attended a seminar and learned that some airport expenditures may violate FAA regulations. The expenditures for Air Race tickets, tables at fund raisers, gold tournaments, Christmas parties and other expenditures which violate FAA regulations. A copy of the April 25 Minutes is enclosed.

Number 16: I am informed that an excellent source of information concerning expenditures by the Airport Authority is Bob Edwards, the internal auditor. I telephoned Mr Edwards, but he declined to meet with me because he feared he could lose his job if it became known that he had done so. He stated that he would only discuss these issues if he were subpoenaed and had the protection of the judicial process.

Additional Airport Authority employees and former employees who may have information regarding these allegations are:

1. Steve Richard - Engineer, 2. Judy McElwelee - Property Manager, 3. Lynn McLaughlin - Property Manager, 4. Jackie Lewis - Secretary, 5. Richard Hill - Former Terminal Manager (Phone 747-5095), 6. Rod Savani - Former Engineering Manager, 7. Dori Owen - Former Marketing Director, 8. Robert Mall - Former Property Manager

Number 17: Enclosed herewith is a letter from John S Monro, Director of National Airways Corporation, a tenant at the airport. He objects to an air cargo lease to International Aviation Terminals. Also enclosed are the Minutes of the January 25, 1996 Airport Authority Trustees meeting at which the Agreement with International Aviation Terminals was approved. This is the Agreement to which Mr Munro objects.

Number 18: There have been numerous allegations of improper dealings with airport tenants, including litigation with George Kiesel at the Stead Airport, mis-management and conflict of interest. I can provide the scanty information I possess on these matters at your request.

Sincerely,
Signed: Steven P. Elliott
Sparks City Attorney

cc:
The Honorable Mills B. Lane, III
Presiding District Judge

Richard A. Gammick
Washoe County District Attorney

COMMENT by Guy Felton

Considering the seriousness of subject allegations and considering that the City of Sparks, via its then-City Attorney, requested subject grand jury investigation, it is incomprehensible and totally unacceptable that such investigation was denied.

The grand jury system in Washoe County is not working. Clearly, this demonstrates that the justice system in Washoe County is not working.

Washoe County judges, as well as the District Attorney, must be viewed with a jaundiced eye. They are permitting a travesty by not speaking against the denial of a proper investigation into a laundry list of alleged improprieties at the Airport Authority.

The specter is one of wide-reaching corruption in Washoe County government. Every elected official in Washoe County who, by his or her silence, condones and supports denial of a grand jury investigation into the Airport Authority, is participating in a criminal conspiracy to deny justice.

Corruption in government can only exist when cowardly and apathetic citizens permit it to exist. One of the primary obligations of American citizenship is to monitor government and to correct abuses, improprieties, and criminal activities within government whenever such are detected.

Public officials who betray the public trust should be removed from office and earnestly prosecuted for their criminal actions.

Click on here to write to The Sparks Citizen Editor.

Click on here to write to The Sparks Citizen Publisher.

Read more about how your government mis-represents you...

Read The Reno Citizen, "Click here".

And Webitor World, "click here".

Questions for
Washoe County District Attorney
Richard Gammick:

If a hypothetical, corrupt district attorney wanted to run interference for his or her own criminal activities and/or those of other corrupt public officials, could the corrupt district attorney pervert the grand jury system to prevent investigations into governmental improprieties?

How could he or she do this?

Could the corrupt district attorney conceivably hide behind the secrecy veil of grand jury proceedings and
manipulate key grand jury members into declaring that allegations of criminal activities in government are not criminal activities ... without actually examining involved allegations in any credible manner?

Could the corrupt district attorney declare that the public has no right to any knowledge of alleged criminal
activities ... and that it is a crime for any public official(s) to inform the public about such alleged criminal
activities?

How can the grand jury system be structured to give it a fail-safe assurance of not being perverted by a corrup district attorney?

Would it not be wise to prevent any district attorney serving as gatekeeper and manager for any grand jury
proceedings ... especially when any such district attorney's integrity is arguable?

Would/should an HONEST district attorney be more concerned about allegations being made public ... than by the allegations themselves?

Is the current Washoe County Grand Jury system not wide open to corrupt tampering and abuse by a
hypothetical, corrupt district attorney?

Regarding the City of Sparks' request for a grand jury investigation (September 1996) into alleged improprieties at the Airport Authority:

Allegedly, the Airport Authority entered into a contract with a certain entity to lobby the State
Legislature at a cost of $72,000 ... but falsely reported to the state department of taxation that the
contract was for only $28,000. Why are you not concerned about this apparent fraudulent act?
Without a credible investigation, Mr. Gammick, why have you decreed that no criminal intent or
action was involved?

Allegedly, the Airport Authority gave preferential treatment to at least one renter ... renting space for
13 cents per square foot for which it could have gotten 17 cents per square foot. Doesn't this invite
the perception of possible graft? Without a credible investigation, Mr. Gammick, why have you
decreed that no criminal intent or action was involved?

Allegedly, the Airport Authority let a construction bid in the amount of 2.2 million dollars for a
project that actually cost 13 million dollars due to change orders. Doesn't this invite the perception
of playing criminal games with the bidding process to give a contract to a favored contractor with
the intent to later increase the actual contract cost? Without a credible investigation, Mr. Gammick, why have you decreed that no criminal intent or action was involved?

Allegedly, the Airport Authority played games with a proposed jet bridge in a manner which
strongly suggests intent to bypass Nevada Revised Statutes. Without a credible investigation, Mr.
Gammick, why have you decreed that no criminal intent or action was involved?

Allegedly, the Airport Authority is playing games with federal noise impact funds to acquire property
in the Rewana Farms area. Without a credible investigation, Mr. Gammick, why have you decreed that no criminal intent or action was involved?

The question has been raised whether the Airport Authority hired a private investigative firm to steal
materials pertinent to criticisms of the Airport Authority from an airport activist. Without a credible
investigation, Mr. Gammick, why have you decreed that no criminal intent or action was involved?

Allegedly, Robert White hired a law firm at Airport expense to represent him regarding unfriendly
press reports and to investigate a member of the Airport board ... an appointed representative of
the People of Washoe County and one of his employers, in effect. Without a credible investigation,
Mr. Gammick, why have you decreed that no criminal intent or action was involved?

Allegedly, the Airport Authority has on many occasions expended Airport funds for purposes which
violate FAA regulations. Without a credible investigation, Mr. Gammick, why have you decreed
that no criminal intent or action was involved?

Allegedly, the Airport's internal auditor has refused to answer questions concerning improprieties at
the Airport ... unless given the protection of the judicial process. What is it that the auditor views as
criminal activity deserving of judicial process protection? Without a credible investigation, Mr.
Gammick, why have you decreed that no Airport criminal intent or action is strongly suggested by
the auditor's position?

The Director of National Airways Corporation, an Airport tenant, wrote the following to the Mayor
of Sparks in September of 1996:
"It is our belief that the Airport Authority has knowingly and willfully embarked on, and does
continue to operate in a manner that, not only contravenes public policy and law, but is an out of
control bureaucracy who feels they are unaccountable and beyond reproach. This is gross, if not
fraudulent mismanagement and as public servants their first responsibility is to ensure their fiduciary
responsibility to the public and carriers alike." Without a credible investigation, Mr. Gammick, why have you decreed that no Airport criminal intent or action is strongly suggested by the Director's
observations?

(The bottom line, Dick, is that we don't need to play the grand jury game in Washoe County if you're to be permitted to play the decree-by-deity game.)

Regarding the integrity of police agencies in Washoe County:

A federal judge last year expressed concern and disbelief regarding the loss or theft of significant
criminal evidence in Washoe County. How can there be any pretense of justice in a criminal case
when key evidence is permitted to disappear? Why haven't you turned this problem inside-out?
Why are you totally unconcerned about this unacceptable reality? Why hasn't anyone been fired for
incompetence or dereliction of duty?

There have been recent reports of the Washoe County Sheriff sending threat letters to several of his
critics. Why have you not spoken publicly about this? Do you see it as acceptable conduct for a
county sheriff to abuse his office by threatening his critics?

Two of your deputies were recently found guilty of criminal behavior. Why are they still on your staff
and on the public payroll? Why do you practice a double standard when dealing with law breakers?

You're trying to turn your back and walk away from the foregoing, but this can not be permitted.
Evidently, you're so out of touch with reality that you think ALL of the People of Washoe can be
fooled ALL of the time. Not so, Mr. Gammick.

How can concerned citizens NOT view you, Mr. Gammick, as either incompetent or corrupt ... or
both? If you waddle like a duck and quack like a duck, you're a duck. The citizens of Washoe
County deserve a first-rate defender of the common good and justice; you do not qualify, Mr.
Gammick.

You should resign in shame, post haste

Signed:

Guy Felton, Chair
Washoe Citizens for an Elected Police Commission