Former FCC Broadband Advisory Panel Chair Arrested For Fraud

from the this-seems-to-be-going-well dept

For a few months now we've been noting how a "broadband deployment advisory panel" (BDAC) the FCC created to "solve the digital divide" has been plagued by scandal, resignation, and accusations of corruption. The panel was created last year to purportedly advise the Trump FCC on the best approach(es) to improving broadband cost and availability. But it didn't take long for reports to emerge that the panel was little more than a who's who of entrenched telecom industry interests, and since its creation its been plagued by a steady stream of disgruntled departures.

This week, Pai's panel made headlines again after reports emerged indicating that the woman Pai picked to chair the panel has been arrested for defrauding investors as part of a fiber network deployment con:

"Elizabeth Ann Pierce, who served as CEO of Quintillion Networks LLC , allegedly convinced two investment companies that the firm had secured contracts for a high-speed fiber-optic system that would generate hundreds of millions of dollars in future revenue, the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office and FBI said Thursday. The system was pitched as one that would provide service in Alaska and connect it to the lower 48 states, authorities said.

“As it turned out, those sales agreements were worthless because the customers had not signed them,” U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman said in prepared remarks. “Instead, as alleged, Pierce had forged counterparty signatures on contract after contract. As a result of Pierce’s deception, the investment companies were left with a system that is worth far less than Pierce had led them to believe."

Ajit Pai had proclaimed that he had an "excellent and deep pool of applicants to serve on the BDAC," when he announced (pdf) Pierce's appointment last year. Apparently that well wasn't quite deep enough. The disgraced executive was appointed by Pai in April, resigned her Quintillion CEO spot in August, and had resigned from the BDAC by September.

But Pierce's arrest is only the latest chapter on the problems with Pai's advisory council. Earlier this year, San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo penned a letter saying he'd be resigning from the panel, claiming in his resignation letter (pdf) that not only does the panel exist almost exclusively to help prop up the interests of incumbent ISPs, but it hadn't actually accomplished a single item of note in terms of helping improve broadband competition or availability:

"It has become abundantly clear that despite the good intentions of several participants, the industry-heavy makeup of BDAC will simply relegate the body to being a vehicle for advancing the interests of the telecommunications industry over those of the public...after nine months of deliberation, negotiation, and discussion, we’ve made no progress toward a single proposal that will actually further the goal of equitable broadband deployment."

Liccardo's complaints were mirrored by a similar, late March resignation letter by New York City CTO Miguel Gamiño Jr. And they were also mirrored by complaints from community broadband groups like the Coalition for Local Internet Choice (CLIC), who say the panel is actively undermining community-driven attempts to improve the nation's broadband connectivity:

"The audacity and impropriety of the process is clear from the fact that this entity, comprised primarily of corporate and carrier interests, is empowered by the Commission to develop model codes that could potentially impact every locality and state in the United States without any serious input from the communities it will most affect."

In more rural areas with a tepid ROI community broadband and public/private partnerships are often the best creative solutions to the broadband monopoly logjam. But because giant ISPs fear competition and folks like Ajit Pai are blindly, ideologically opposed to even working closely with local governments, the FCC is now actively undermining such efforts. Pai has routinely supported ISP-crafted protectionist state laws in 21 states that hamstring communities looking to build their own networks, even in areas ISPs refuse to.

In other words, much like his boss, Ajit Pai says one thing then immediately does another; he breathlessly professes to be "fixing" problems he's actually making worse, and is leaving a trail of dysfunction and grumbling in his wake.

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Filed Under: ajit pai, broadband development advisory panel, corruption, elizabeth ann pierce, fcc, scams
Companies: quintillion networks


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  1. icon
    That Anonymous Coward (profile), 18 Apr 2018 @ 1:53pm

    That was no well, it was on oversized novelty mug.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. identicon
    David, 18 Apr 2018 @ 1:55pm

    Why isn't there qualified immunity?

    Shouldn't politicians be exempt from prosecution if they can plausibly make believe that they felt entitled to staffing their pockets full of whoever's money they could get a hold on?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  3. identicon
    Rocky, 18 Apr 2018 @ 2:01pm

    Re: Why isn't there qualified immunity?

    I don't think the cops would like the competition...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  4. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Apr 2018 @ 2:05pm

    So how many quintillion dollars

    were they hoping to get away with?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  5. icon
    Toom1275 (profile), 18 Apr 2018 @ 2:11pm

    "Pierce's scheme "began unraveling" after "a customer disputed invoices that it received from the Fiber Optic Company pursuant to one of the Fake Revenue Agreements," the arrest announcement said."

    link to this | view in thread ]

  6. icon
    Roger Strong (profile), 18 Apr 2018 @ 2:29pm

    I expect that Techdirt will eventually write a Where Are They Now article about this administration's staff and advisers.

    Complete with a map linked to their ankle monitors.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  7. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Apr 2018 @ 3:07pm

    Who could blame him?

    "But because giant ISPs fear competition and folks like Ajit Pai are blindly, ideologically opposed to even working closely with local governments, the FCC is now actively undermining such efforts."

    Of course he is opposed to working with Governments, have you seen the slimy good for nothing appointees who 'claim' to be all about helping the public while in practice they are just screwing everyone they can over to make a buck? I mean all government appointees are like that (looks at Pai's appointment... nough said).

    link to this | view in thread ]

  8. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Apr 2018 @ 3:43pm

    Re: Who could blame him?

    See, even Pai doesn't want to work with people like himself... not that he would admit it, but if you follow his ideology that's where you end up.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  9. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Apr 2018 @ 4:10pm

    Re:

    I'm honestly not surprised. The churlish manner in which he carries himself in the comments on Ars Technica, Techdirt and elsewhere seems like something Pai would adore.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  10. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Apr 2018 @ 10:00pm

    out_of_the_blue's heroes, ladies and gentlemen!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  11. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Apr 2018 @ 12:06am

    Somebody arrest this anti American piece of pai already.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  12. icon
    ECA (profile), 19 Apr 2018 @ 1:46am

    Noting new here...

    Just another Corrupt individual found messing up..
    While working for another Corrupt person incharge of TO MUCH POWER..

    link to this | view in thread ]

  13. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Apr 2018 @ 5:15am

    "Apparently that well wasn't quite deep enough."

    You probably meant to say that the swamp wasn't wide enough.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  14. This comment has been flagged by the community. Click here to show it
    icon
    JerrySnow (profile), 19 Apr 2018 @ 6:39am

    Yeah, I think so. I hope more you can find at http://bit.ly/2oE64RP. Good luck.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  15. icon
    Ninja (profile), 19 Apr 2018 @ 7:31am

    Pai may be in these same headlines in the future.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  16. icon
    That One Guy (profile), 19 Apr 2018 @ 7:49am

    Re:

    Why am I not surprised...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  17. identicon
    Michael, 19 Apr 2018 @ 8:43am

    "Ajit Pai had proclaimed that he had an "excellent and deep pool of applicants to serve on the BDAC,""


    To be fair, he hired what was apparently an incredible liar. While I suppose it is possible he hired her because she successfully conned several investment companies, it also seems just as possible that she was hiding that from him as well.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  18. identicon
    Michael, 19 Apr 2018 @ 8:45am

    Re:

    We can write much of that article now:

    Pai: In-house Counsel, Verizon
    Pierce: Vice-President of Ethics, Comcast
    ...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  19. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 19 Apr 2018 @ 9:03am

    Re:

    We can dream.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  20. identicon
    Thad, 19 Apr 2018 @ 9:55am

    Re: Re:

    I kinda love how he's the only person on the entire list who doesn't have some kind of affiliation after his name to explain who he is, what he does, or who he represents. I guess somebody decided "Richard Bennett, Internet Troll" didn't look prestigious enough.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  21. identicon
    Thad, 19 Apr 2018 @ 9:58am

    Re:

    Technically he already is. Ars Technica's headline for this story is "Ajit Pai’s ex-broadband advisor arrested on charge of forging fiber contracts".

    link to this | view in thread ]


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