In a striking revelation from a 2023 Inspector General report, it was uncovered that military personnel charged over $500,000 on their government travel charge cards for activities including gambling, alcohol purchases, and nightlife entertainment.
These expenditures managed to slip through the cracks of financial oversight, raising alarms about the integrity of the system.
The investigation, titled “Audit of the DoD Government Travel Charge Card Program: The Visa IntelliLink Compliance Management System,” scrutinized the VICM system and pinpointed vulnerabilities that allowed such unauthorized spending to flourish.
Reckless Spending Behaviors
The audit revealed a range of reckless spending behaviors among service members.
It included trivial purchases, such as online gaming app downloads and holiday drinks, as well as more serious misconduct that unfolded over months.
One striking example involved an Airman who engaged in gambling for five consecutive months on his government card without alerting his finance office or commanding officer.
His spree began on April 22, 2023, when he withdrew $200 from an ATM at MGM National Harbor, located just ten miles from the Pentagon.
This transaction included a service fee of $7.95.
He made another $200 withdrawal later that same day, which kicked off a series of 20 additional withdrawals that the travel charge card system failed to recognize.
Transaction Oversight Failures
Ordinarily, withdrawals from ATMs linked to cash machine providers would trigger alerts within the VICM system.
However, in this case, the Airman’s transactions began shortly after the ATM operator changed its name, which caused a mismatch in the system’s tracking.
As time went on, his charges escalated dramatically, culminating in $2,267 in June, $3,700 in July, and another $1,900 in August.
It was only when investigators from the Inspector General began examining the account that they notified finance officials and the service member’s commanding officer about the ongoing misuse.
Overall, the Airman racked up a staggering total of $10,633, including ATM fees, through 21 withdrawals at National Harbor and two more at a different casino, exemplifying a troubling disregard for GTC resources.
Challenges in Program Management
The audit also revealed close to 11,000 unauthorized transactions that added up to around $500,000, with spikes in such spending occurring during holidays and major sporting events.
While military personnel are expected to strictly limit the use of their government travel cards to official purposes, the report highlighted ongoing challenges in the program’s management.
Interestingly, despite the numerous instances of misuse, the report noted a drop in unauthorized charges compared to previous years.
This decline has been attributed to enhancements in oversight protocols.
A prior audit in 2015 had already uncovered close to $1 million in gambling-related charges, underscoring the persistent difficulties in effectively monitoring government travel card usage among military members.
Source: Taskandpurpose