A senior Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) official who helped veterans get jobs is under investigation for possible conflicts of interest between her and her husband’s software business, thanks to a whistleblower’s allegations.
The VA Office of Inspector General (IG) declined to comment or divulge documents to the Project on Government Oversight, which conducted the investigation, because of an “ongoing law enforcement investigation” concerning Rosye Cloud — who was the Veterans Employment Center senior advisor and is married to Chad Cloud, president of Software Performance Group.
POGO is a non-profit government watchdog.
Former Navy captain and whistleblower John Andrews claims he was fired from his job as a military affairs advisor to the city of Norfolk, Virginia, in November 2014, the day after he raised concerns over a possible conflict of interest between the two. Mr. Cloud’s job entails selling software to help veterans, according to a January 2015 story in the Virginian Pilot.
It wasn’t until last month, however, that the IG told both Andrews and POGO it couldn’t hand over any documents related to Cloud because of an ongoing investigation.
Andrews, according to emails the Pilot obtained last year, learned Rosye Cloud had been working with his supervisors on a VA program that involved Norfolk. Andrews also claimed Chad Cloud was pitching his software to colleges and other organizations across Virginia. (RELATED: VA Labor Contract Favors Union Bureaucrats Over Vets For Jobs)
A former VA employee claimed two agents entered Rosye Cloud’s office at VA headquarters in February 2016 to take her computer hard drive and government-issued iPhone and iPad, according to POGO.
Both Clouds claimed they recused themselves from business with each other in statements POGO obtained.
UPDATE:
The VA OIG has since issued a report Dec. 14 that exonerated Ms. Cloud of all allegations.
A spokesman for Chad Cloud told POGO that Mrs. Cloud signed recusal statements on April 11, 2014, and Jan. 15, 2015. The spokesman told TheDCNF that Mr. Cloud is not a target of the investigation. The headline on the above post has been updated to reflect the spokesman’s statement.
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