Japan's pricey whisky gift to Pompeo still missing

WASHINGTON – The State Department’s interior watchdog said Thursday that a astir $6,000 vessel of Japanese whisky fixed to erstwhile Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that was reported missing remains unaccounted for.

The department's inspector wide besides said that the “gift vault,” successful which presents fixed to elder U.S. officials are stored, was recovered to beryllium successful “a authorities of disarray” erstwhile the Biden medication took bureau successful January. It said caller safeguards and controls are needed to guarantee that gifts to elder U.S. officials are decently accounted for.

In a report, the inspector wide said it was incapable to find a $5,800 vessel of 30-year-old Suntory Hibiki whisky that was fixed to Pompeo by the Japanese authorities successful 2019, on with a 22-karat golden commemorative coin worthy $560. The items were reported missing successful August successful a announcement filed successful the Federal Register.

At the time, a Pompeo typical said the erstwhile caput knew thing astir the acquisition oregon the inspector general’s inquiry.

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Later, it emerged that a postulation of porcelain and copper vases valued astatine $20,000 that the U.S. authorities bought arsenic gifts for leaders readying to be a Group of Seven acme earlier it was canceled besides were missing. The inspector wide reported that those vases, arsenic good arsenic an unspecified fig of commemorative G-7 pewter trays, marble trinket boxes and leather portfolios valued astatine $680 each, had been recovered successful storage.

“OIG located the missing vases (all of which were successful retention and for which the Department had ne'er accepted delivery),” it said successful the report. “However, OIG was incapable to find what happened to the different items, including the golden coin and the whisky. OIG could not hint the items due to the fact that of the deficiency of an inventory strategy to relationship for the disposition of items and the information that determination are nary information cameras extracurricular the acquisition vault.”

It said records showed that 77 radical had entered the vault 3,051 times betwixt Aug, 3, 2020, and Jan. 31, 2021. Many of those radical had near the authorities by the clip the inspector wide began the probe and could not beryllium compelled to talk astir their actions oregon entree to the vault, the study said.

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The inspector general's study recommended that the State Department boost information astatine the gifts vault and find whether information cameras should beryllium placed successful the facility.

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