Letter To The Editor: Author Chuck Montaño Comments On His Book ‘Los Alamos: A Whistleblower’s Diary’

By Chuck Montaño
Santa Fe

I thank the Los Alamos Daily Post for its recent review of my book. The book is titled Los Alamos: A Whistleblower’s Diary, and is a “70th Anniversary Reflection” focusing on
significant issues and events other books about Los Alamos tend to overlook.

The centerpiece of my book is the obstruction of justice that happened in 2003, when two seasoned criminal investigators—Glenn Walp and Steve Doran—were terminated suddenly
for the purpose of derailing their ongoing investigation of a major procurement fraud occurring in Los Alamos at the time.

LANL and University of California officials were negligent, at best, for what they did. And as for the former deputy director—Richard Burick, who may or may not have been a knowing recipient of some of the merchandise being procured for illicit purposes, at issue is the condition and location of the gun responsible for his demise, plus the sequence of events and associated timeline leading up to that moment.

A related question is why the Los Alamos police department rushed to label the cause of death a suicide, as opposed to waiting for the autopsy to be done, or related Office of Medical Examiner report to be released more than a week later.

Revelations in that report should have caused law enforcement to pause, to ask more questions. The reader is left to ponder why those questions were never asked.

Editor’s note: A reading and book signing by Chuck Montaño is set for 2 p.m., Saturday, May 23 at Salón Ortega in Albuquerque.

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