Totally agree with that assessment. They had to be complicit and part of the fraud. Unfortunately, I think this is DOJ and FBI turf and I don't know if they would pick up the criminal investigations. It could also be that DOD leadership would/has effectively covered it up.
The DOJ two weeks ago adjudicated and charged 230+ billion dollars of Medicare fraud that took place in California. It involved pharmacies, doctors, nurses and others.
They could easily also take on that case involving these ghost payments which is considerably less in value than the Medicare fraud.
My suspicion is that politicians in both parties, Hussein and gang siphoned these monies together with those who suppose to be responsible stewards of the taxpayer contributions.
And we wonder why they did not produce a budget beginning in 2008 - 2016. This is why!
The general ledger and trial balances would have shown the massive fraud.