Ex-EPA official pleads guilty to theft, sparks Capitol Hill inquiry

{mosads}On Monday, Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairwoman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) will hold a briefing for senators with the EPA inspector general’s office.

“It is outrageous that this admitted con man lied to his supervisors in order to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars from the federal government going back to the George W. Bush Administration,” Boxer said in a statement.

“I am very grateful to the EPA Office of Inspector General and EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy for putting an end to his thievery. I am also grateful to the Obama Administration’s Department of Justice for ensuring that the American taxpayers will be reimbursed,” she said.

Beale faces up to 37 months in prison and, in a plea deal, agreed to forfeit $507,000 and pay fines of as much as $60,000, Bloomberg reports.

David Vitter (La.), the top Republican on the environment committee, said he’s concerned the EPA remains vulnerable to fraud.

“The case this morning highlights a massive problem with the EPA, and figuring out why this corruption occurred with apparently no one the wiser needs to be a priority of our committee,” he said in a statement.