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'''Custer Battles''', LLC is a security company based in McLean, Virginia in the United States , that promots promotes its services as including "security services", "litigation support", "global risk consulting", "training" and "business intelligence".
==Background==
The company's founders are [[Scott Custer]], a former Army Ranger and defense consultant, and former [[CIA ]] officer [[Michael Battles]], who ran for Congress in Rhode Island in 2002 and was defeated in the Republican primary. Battles is a [[Fox News ]] Channel commentator. [http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002058470_contract09.html]
Custer Battles was a newly formed company with no experience in the security industry when it landed one of the first contracts issued in [[Iraq ]] in the spring of 2003 to secure the airport. The no-bid contract was worth $16 million when it was awarded in the chaos after the fall of [[Saddam Hussein]]. [http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002058470_contract09.html]
On July 1, 2003 , the company announced that it would "bring its security training expertise to the State of Maine." [http://www.custerbattles.com/press/news_070103.htm]
On April 9, 2004, BBC News reported that a Custer Battles employee and former British soldier, [[Michael Bloss]], "was killed while guarding electrical workers near the town of Hit, west of Baghdad." [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/3614697.stm]
A litany of complaints against Custer Battles can be found in the Forum section of [[ALI Capital Partners]].[http://www.alicp.com/]
Custer Battles is currently banned from further DoD [[Department of Defense]] contracting.[http://www.taf.org]. A ''qui tam'' lawsuit has been filed against it by several parties seeking recovery, on behalf of the US, of allegedly fraudulent claims by Custer Battles. A copy of the complaint can be downloaded from [http://www.taf.org/custerbattles.pdf here.]
==Allegations of Unrestrained Force==
"These aren't insurgents that we're brutalizing," says Craun. "It was local civilians on their way to work. It's wrong." Capt. [[Bill Craun ]] is one of four former Custer Battles employees in an [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6947745/ NBC report] that allege civilian contractors used such unrestrained force in Iraq, they had to quit soon after because of disgust. "What we saw, I know the American population wouldn't stand for," Craun said referring to subcontracted local youth shooting the place up.
==Whistleblowing on Massive Billing Fraud==
*[[CorpWatch ]] has details.*DemocracyNow[[Democracy Now]]! has a segment with interview on 1 March 2005.
==Contact Information==
