Issa, Grassley: DOJ Obstructed Mexican Guns Probe

Wednesday, 06 Jul 2011 01:20 PM
By Martin Gould and Abigail Walls

The top man in the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) has turned sensationally against his Department of Justice bosses saying they were trying to stymie an investigation into the Operation Fast and Furious scandal.


Kenneth Melson told Congress in a secret deposition that the Justice Department falsely leaked stories to the press that he was about to resign over Fast and Furious, Rep. Darrell Issa and Sen. Charles Grassley say. (Associated Press Photo)

Kenneth Melson, acting director of the ATF, gave a secret deposition to Congress on July 4, it was revealed today. He took his own lawyer instead of relying on one from the ATF.

The stunning move will increase pressure on Attorney General Eric Holder to resign over the operation that saw some 2,000 guns sold to straw buyers who then sold them to Mexican drug cartel leaders.

But Fast and Furious and its sister plan, Project Gunrunner, went disastrously wrong, and 80 percent of the weapons went missing. Two were found at the Arizona site where Border Agent Brian Terry was killed in December.

Republicans leading the investigation in both the House and Senate wrote a stinging letter to Holder yesterday informing him of Melson’s move, calling it “extremely helpful to our investigation.â€