Conspiracy & theft

Senior Navy intelligence official indicted in covert weapons deal

A senior Navy intelligence official has been indicted on charges of theft and conspiracy as part of a long-running federal investigation into a secretive military operation featuring the Navy SEALs and untraceable weapons parts.

David W. Landersman, formerly the senior director for intelligence in an obscure Pentagon office that dabbled in covert programs, becomes the third person charged in a mysterious case that has already resulted in two convictions.

Prosecutors charge that Landersman helped arrange a sweetheart $1.6 million defense contract for his brother — a bankrupt California hot-rod mechanic — to manufacture untraceable rifle silencers that turned out to be junk and cost only $10,000 in parts and labor to manufacture.