European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - May 31, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page z the stars and stripes sunday May 31,1987 new update Driver enters plea Bridgeport Calif. A the Driver of a bus that plunged into a frigid River has pleaded no contest to six manslaughter charges stemming from the Acci Dent thai killed 21 elderly Passen Gers. Ernst Klimuck 48, could face up to four years in prison on the six felony counts under the terms of a plea bargain with prosecutor approved by Mono county Superior court judge n. Edward Den ton. Klimeck remains free on $15,000 bail until his sentencing scheduled for july 22. The judge dropped 15 other counts of felony manslaughter 21counts of Misdemeanour vehicular manslaughter and one count each of driving without a proper License driving left of a solid yellow line and driving on the wrong Side of the Road. Flames haunt China Beijing a firefighters have stamped out flames that re Vived in northeastern China after a huge Forest ire in the area was extinguished the forestry ministry said Friday. The fire which killed 191 peo ple injured 221 and left 50,000 homeless had been declared extinguished earlier in the week after More than three weeks of fir Cright ing but at least four Small fires re Vived in the burned area thurs Day. Temperatures Hiet ally into. C w fl3 bdhngij7 Al Brrow Tatum 2 00 tji sub to 77 a 66 91 Crurk--1lt k 61 7b 93 Houston Ira Karupo n Jan Hui Kanui City Isrie to a or 52 79 70 b3 79 69 so 7 65 6 so cd h a 7.a by sch Irani Cosyn Juan sea thu european weather f extent lot sunday Musiy Cloudy i a touch Ahert with i fun or 51 Ami in i Fil 70 ions4b-u Ruri and Tri two Elba he h be unit sunday 9 ?4 in Oitim monday to in Ruck try Tail / jews main Pii n f Ino Miry legs j t Ou-3y 10 cd Huff m h 44olaid thin Cit during Zitur Aii in a  a s5 Liun a 4s m Pirn 63 ill jew flair a cd juju. P parly p German lawsuit filed to recover Stuttgart s loss in fraud scheme by Joseph Owen Stuttgart Bureau Stuttgart the . Justice department is going to court in july to recover More than half a million dollars it claims the Stuttgart military Community lost to an electrical contractor through fraud Between 982 and 1985. A Stuttgart criminal court already has sentenced the firm s director to prison and fined three other men for their connection in swindling the Community out of 1.03 million Marks which included Bills for undelivered materials and non existent labor said German slate prosecutor Kart Friedrich Engelbrecht  anlage schol Tysick of Stuttgart inflated its reports of work hours by about 100 percent when it billed the military Community More than 200,000 Marks for emergency labor at the army Hospital in bad Cannstatt in Early 1984, Engelbrecht said in citing examples of the firm s actions. The company also overcharged the military about 60,000 Marks for an electronic filler sys tem for computer Security. The court convicted the four defendants in april based on 620,000 Marks Worth of Billing fraud. Engle Brecht said an investigation of company and army records for february 1984 to november 1985, revealed even More discrepancies but the criminal court focused Only on Bills for which it had proof of fraud since the Cash value Dors not affect sentencing. The Dollar s value ranged from 2,49 Marks to 3.45 Marks during the period investigated . Officials tiled suit in january in a Stuttgart state court to recover 1.03 Mil lion Marks from the company director gun tar Franz Scholtisek 36, of win no Den said Vii corps spokesman la. Col. William Mulvey. He said the first hearing is june 25. Scholtisek s now defunct company won the Stuttgart military Community s electrical maintenance contract for the first Lime in 1982. Its final contract expired in november 1985. On april 28, 1987, the criminal court sentenced schol Tysick to Ihrcke years in prison for fraud and malfeasance. The court also convicted Herbert Straus 41, of Gunzenhauser a contract ing officer s representative in the Mili tary Community s directorate of Engi Neering and housing from 1981 to 1985, As the . Employee who inspected the contractor s work and authorized payment for it Straus approved Bills Tor work and materials which he  s company had not provided and in some cases falsified the Bills himself Engelbrecht said. In return the electrical firm gave Straus a car a Wash ing machine & television set other electrical equipment and Cash. Straus was fined 4,006 Marks $2,210 and placed on three Yean probation. Violating the probation would Cost him a two year prison term. When military officials leaned of Straus role in the fraud he was Given the option of leaving the Cavern immediately without notice or being fired. He chose to leave without prior notice Mulvey said. Scholtisek employees Hans Joachim Waller 27, of Stuttgart and Berndt Paul it clash j9, of Waiblinger also Drew 4,000-Mark fines and three years Proba Tion. Engelbrecht said the two employees influenced the false Billing and installed the gift appliances in Straus bavarian Home. The military Community criminal investigation come alerted German police to the Case in october 1985. Engel Brecht said. German officials brought charges against the defendants in no vember 1986, and their trial occurred on seven Days Between March 19 and april 28 this year Mulvey said the military Community has made procedural changes to thwart future fraud schemes. A system of Check and balances has been instituted so that no single individual conducts a contract action from Start to finish Mulvey said. Differed office now Are responsible for contracts Cost estimates design inspections1 and Bud gets. With the work passing from one sep Arate Section to another each Section has a Chance to Check the work of other Section and should be Able to identify fraud waste and abuse he . The l fraud a Dadusc n Saia Bill pending to allow Over-65 vets continued coverage of champs by Chuck Vinch the defense department s civilian health stalled in the Senate armed serv Washington Bureau Washington military retirees Over age 65 could continue to use their champs insurance benefits instead of medicare for some services under a Bill pending before the Senate armed serv ices committee. The Bill introduced earlier this year by sen Daniel Inouye a Hawaii would allow champs to become a second payer to medicare with the de sense department picking up the Bill said a staffer for Inouye. That s similar to arrangements that most other Federal  when military retirees and their spouses reach age 65, they Are no longer eligible for the civilian health and med ical program of the uniformed services the insurance plan for Active duty family members retirees and their families. After age 65, those people usually be come eligible for medicare the Federal government s health insurance program. But champs provides greater Bene fits for some services including belter mental health and denial coverage the staffer said. But the real impetus for this Bill in senator Inouye s mind is the fact thai medicare does not cover any service performed in foreign hospitals the staffer said. Many retirees live overseas and under this Bill they would continue to be covered by champs even Amer they reach 65." Inouye has introduced similar legis lation in the past but it has always Stalle services committee primarily because of the Cost. The Cost estimate for this was pegged Ai s90 million per year about four or five years ago so i d imagine it would be considerably More now the staffer said. The defense department also is concerned about the Cost but it generally agreeable to the idea o Pentagon official said. We were told a few Yean ago thai Dod had developed a similar proposal internally and had forwarded n to the office of management and budget but bomb was firmly against it because of the once  lie Inouye staffer said. There is no time limit for Ibe Senate armed services committee to act of Inouye s Bill the staffer said. Number of Active duty personnel drops Washington a the Active duty strength of the nation s military services declined in april compared with the previous month but remained slightly above the level reported a year ago the Pentagon said Friday. As of april 30, the army Navy Marine corps and air Force had 2.158,160men and women on Active duty Down 10,020 compared with the March 31 Fig ure. The combined Lotnel remained above the year ago tally however. The armed services reported Active duty strength of 2,155,515 on april 30, 1986, or 2,645 fewer than Friday s total. La is not unusual for military strength to swing up and Down on a Mondui Lybass during the year primarily because of differences in uie flow of new recruits. According to the latest military strength assessment All four services re ported a monthly decline in strength. The army ended april with 772.936 men and women on Active duty Down by 1, 168 from the March total. The Navy said it bad 582.597 men and women on Active duty As of april 30, Down 957 compared with March the air Force reported 604,520 individual on Active duty Down 7,062. And the Marine corps finished the month Wilh 198.107 individuals Down 833. June exercise will include b-1b bomber Washington up the ninth consecutive annual Large scale exercise to test the readiness of missile and bomber Crews for a nuclear War will be launched in june and will involve the bib bomber for the first Lime the air Force said Friday. Called global shield 87, the Maneu vers Are intended to test the ability of the strategic air come to meet the Chal Lenge of keeping aircraft flying under realistic wartime conditions the air Force said. It said Canadian forces attached to Sac will take part in the Maneu vers which will be held june 10-19. A Sac spokesman said the bibs which will be taken from Dyess fab Texas where 26 of them Are located will play a very minor role in the Maneu vers