A whistleblower, an employee, Buster Roderigas, of an L-3 Communications subsidiary, L-3 Vertex Aerospace, will receive $720,00 of the company's $4 million settlement with the Department of Defense, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports, "Whistle-blower Shares Settlement." Roderigas protected the public by blowing the whistle on fraudulent bills the company submitted for helicopter maintenance services on a contract in Iraq. Roderigas will also receive $318,000 to cover his attorney's fees in the case.
When an private company employee blows the whistle on fraudulent billing submitted to the federal government and, as a result, the government recovers some of the money, the employee is entitled under the law to a percentage. The law serves to protect the public by giving employees, who are positioned to blow the whistle, incentive to do so. It is unlawful for a company to retaliate against an employee who has blown the whistle in this way.
