O’Hair Pleads Guilty, Two Face Trial in Local Defense Contract Cases

The federal criminal investigation that resulted in the February indictments of three local men has grown tentacles that extend to the Washington, D.C., offices of U.S. Rep. John Murtha.

Mark O’Hair and Richard Schaller, both of Niceville, and Theodore Sumrall of Fort Walton Beach were indicted for crimes they are accused of committing while working at the Air Force Research Laboratory on Eglin Air Force Base.

The charges stem from O’Hair’s alleged illegal steering of defense contracts to Schaller’s business, Schaller Engineering Inc. O’Hair, federal agents say, was employed by SEI while also working for the Department of Defense.

Read more: (Tom McLaughlin, “One Pleads Guilty, Two Face Trial in Local Defense Contract Cases,” Northwest Florida Daily News, 7/20/09)