For FBI, weld case closed

Eight months after delving into allegations of hundreds of faulty welds on the new Bay Bridge, the FBI has closed the case because it lacks sufficient evidence at this time to bring criminal charges.

"It would have been necessary for us to prove from the forensic evidence that the welds were inferior and then prove the criminal intent of those who had been involved," said Joe Ford, special agent in charge for the FBI's San Francisco office.

Several other state and federal probes continue, including a comprehensive investigation by California Attorney General Bill Lockyer.

In the FBI's case, Ford said this type of criminal intent and fraud case is difficult to prove.

Making the probe yet more difficult: Thousands of welds -- the potential forensic evidence -- had already been buried in concrete.

And without the sufficient physical evidence, what is left are witness or expert accounts, which were conflicting, Ford said.

In late September, the U.S. attorney declined to move forward with the case.

"We needed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a crime was committed," said Ford, who helped the government crack the Enron scandal before being assigned to run the FBI's San Francisco field office.

Ford said it would take new evidence to reopen the case.

Such evidence could come fromany of several ongoing federal and state probes or lawsuits dealing with the allegations of shoddy work and lax worker safety on the $6.3 billion public project.

Open investigations include those by the California attorney general, the Federal Highway Administration, the state auditor and the inspectors general of U.S. Transportation and Labor departments.

The closure of the criminal case doesn't preclude civil action, which requires a lower standard of evidence than criminal cases.

Throughout the FBI's investigation, Caltrans, contractor KFM Joint Venture and Cal-OSHA have consistently maintained that Bay Bridge welds and workplaces are safe.

Caltrans said in April the welds were among the best they have seen in the industry. Cal-OSHA had equally high praise for main contractor Kiewit Pacific's safety record.

Cofferdam welding has concluded, and 80 percent of the skyway is now complete, Caltrans officials said Wednesday.

Caltrans spokeswoman Lauren Wonder said the state agency had seen nothing formal in writing from any investigating agency, including the FBI, and could not comment.

KFM representatives Chris Lehane and Nathan Ballard offered no immediate reaction to word of the FBI investigation.

Since June 2004, more than 20 workers on the project have alleged faulty welds -- all of which were buried in concrete by the time the FBI initiated its investigation.

One of those welders, former night crew foreman Angel Leon, said he was disappointed by the outcome of the FBI investigation.

"God and only a few people know what really happened," he said. "I really hope that we don't have to regret that we didn't find enough evidence."

The FBI investigation of alleged criminal intent and fraud began in February after a call to a public corruption hot line alerted them to problems on the bridge project.

"This one had enough smoke around it that we opened the investigation," Ford said, adding the agency devoted a squad of agents to the investigation for a concerted period of time.

They interviewed "scores of people."

In early May, three unburied welds -- two allegedly faulty based on welders' accounts -- were tested by Federal Highway Administration and came back clean.

While those welds were made after bridge contractor KFM and Caltrans knew of the allegations, the results had "a tremendous impact on us going forward because it became a battle of experts," Ford said.

Ford stressed the FBI criminal investigation in no way reflects whether the new Bay Bridge is safe and sound. Structural integrity is the responsibility of Caltrans and the Federal Highway Administration, he said.

"It is not the FBI that makes that determination," Ford said.

In fact, a Federal Highway Administration analysis on the structural integrity of the bridge -- initiated in May -- is pending. In a statement, the agency said it will complete its report in the "near future."

The study will put the Bay Bridge design through a complicated computer analysis to determine whether the bridge would survive an earthquake even if welds are bad.

The report is also expected to assess the quality control and quality assurance procedures on the megaproject. Caltrans has relied on its quality control documentation to assure the public the bridge is sound.

California State Auditor Elaine Howle is pursuing worker safety claims and is expected to release a report later this fall.

Welder Leon, who spoke to the audit staff, and his attorney said questioning focused on unreported injuries, alleged threats to workers and an incentive plan that workers criticized as "hush money."

The audit was sparked after welders alleged KFM's nearly perfect safety record masked a site dominated by fear of retaliation for reporting injuries and cash bonuses for clean safety records, which led to the concealment of injuries.