private security firm news stories on Newser

Airports' New Year's Resolution: Dump TSA?

Mark Russell — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 06:17:08 CST

Fed up with TSA hassles at the airport? You may be in luck. Aware of growing passenger fury, more and more airports—including Dulles and Reagan National—are considering switching to private companies for security screening, reports the Washington Post . Sixteen airports have chosen to go the contractor route since...

Blackwater Settles With US for $42M

Polly Davis Doig — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 08:44:28 CDT

No stranger to controversy, Blackwater has settled a laundry list of transgressions with the State Department to the tune of $42 million. The deal treats violations—which include illegally exporting weapons to Afghanistan and offering to train Sudanese troops without authorization—as an administrative matter, and allows Blackwater, now known...

For Sale: One Disgraced Security Firm

Jane Yager — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 09:15:54 CDT

The private security firm that used to be known as Blackwater is up for sale, after a recent name change to Xe Services failed to cure its dismal reputation. Founder Erik Prince has put the company on the block, saying improvements since the disastrous shootout at a Baghdad intersection in...

Iraqi Nixes Blackwater Settlement Offer

Sun, 10 Jan 2010 10:44:48 CST

An Iraqi injured by the US private security firm once known as Blackwater today rejected a compensation deal for injuries he suffered after company employees opened fire in a crowded Baghdad square. "We have rejected the settlement because it is a small amount. We won't accept such an amount," said...

Blackwater OK'd $1M Bribe Fund After '07 Iraq Shooting

Will McCahill — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:39:52 CST

Security firm Blackwater set aside $1 million for secret payments to critical Iraqi officials after the 2007 Baghdad shootout that left 17 civilians dead. With Blackwater fearing it could lose its lucrative operating license in the country, former executives tell the New York Times , then-president Gary Jackson authorized the bribe...

CIA Uses Blackwater to Help Run Drone Attacks

Jason Farago — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 08:08:23 CDT

The CIA has relied on a secret division inside the company once known as Blackwater for its drone operations in Pakistan and Afghanistan, private employees and government officials tell the New York Times . The for-profit company assembles and loads Hellfire missiles and quarter-ton bombs on secret CIA bases on both...

After LAPD Makeover, Bratton Steps Down as Chief

Harry Kimball — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 14:55:58 CDT

William Bratton surprised colleagues and the city of Los Angeles with news today that he's stepping down as police chief, the Times reports. In his 6 years, Bratton reduced crime dramatically and introduced institutional reforms. The 61-year-old will head a private security firm after he officially passes the baton in...

US Confused by Afghan Mercenaries

Kevin Spak — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 08:36:43 CST

It’s becoming harder to keep gun-wielding men straight in Afghanistan. Private security firms have cropped up all over, the Wall Street Journal reports, hired to protect businesses, particularly those doing work for the US. But coalition troops often can’t tell such groups apart from militants, and have been in at...

Blackwater Probe Hits Roadblocks

Jane Yager — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:33:00 CST

The Justice Department warned Congress last month that major legal obstacles stand in the way of any prosecution of private security firm Blackwater for a September shooting in Iraq, the New York Times reports. Immunity granted by the State Department to Blackwater employees represents a possible roadblock; Justice also has...