Over 100 Criminal Probes Related to Stimulus Funding in the Department of Energy Alone

Thankfully, at least one man in the federal government has been awfully busy on behalf of the American taxpayer:

The Energy Department's inspector general has launched more than 100 criminal investigations related to 2009 economic stimulus spending.

In written testimony prepared for delivery to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee today, Inspector General Gregory Friedman said the investigations have involved "various schemes, including the submission of false information, claims for unallowable or unauthorized expenses, and other improper uses of Recovery Act funds."

So far, the investigations have led to five criminal prosecutions and brought in "over $2.3 million in monetary recoveries," Friedman said.

Bear in mind that the Department of Energy only recieved $35 billion of the $787 billion allocated by the stimulus bill. It would be impossible to get a handle on how much criminal activity surrounds the stimulus bill, given that the federal government is not exactly known for aggressively policing fraud. Still, it sounds like the Department of Energy inspector general is doing yeoman's work. If the schemes that he's uncovered are anything to go by, the stimulus has likely produced a staggering amount of crime.