Posted on 05/14/2004 3:43:32 AM PDT by calcowgirl
Prometheus Methods Tower Services Inc., the business that cost Nick Berg his life in Iraq, has no records with the Pennsylvania Department of State.
The company that specialized in building communications towers never registered with the Pennsylvania Corporation Bureau, said Brian McDonald, spokesman for the state department.
McDonald conducted a search of the bureau’s online list of registered businesses, but found no matches.
The same search done by a Daily Local News reporter produced the same results -- several businesses contained the word "Prometheus" in their names. Only one is located in West Chester, and it is not related to Berg’s business.
Companies are not legally required to register with the state, but McDonald explained it is usually the first step an owner takes.
"You’d be very foolish not to register your business with the department," he said. "It is nearly impossible to exist without doing it."
Registering allows an owner to set up his business’s tax structure. It also establishes how the business is run, for example, whether or not it is for-profit or nonprofit.
"It is basically the infrastructure by which businesses are set up in the commonwealth," McDonald said.
McDonald added it is possible the business could be listed in the bureau’s records under a different name.
Searching the statewide yellow pages online found two company names containing the word "Prometheus" in Philadelphia. One is an Internet consulting business.
An employee at the second one, which is called Prometheus Radio Project, said it was not affiliated with the business owned by the local man slain in Iraq by members of al-Qaida.
Officials at the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue and the Internal Revenue Service said state and federal laws prohibited their agencies from providing any records they had of Prometheus Methods Tower Services -- even whether the company had ever filed a return.
"Any information that we get or is contained on a tax return I can’t release," said Steve Kniley, press secretary for the state revenue department. "It is considered confidential under tax law."
Tax records become public information only if a lien is filed against a business. According to Kniley, there are no liens against Berg’s company.
Bill Cressman, spokesman at the IRS’s Philadelphia office, said the only companies with public tax records are nonprofit corporations.
At least one person claims he can confirm Prometheus’ existence.
Jay Shur, who works at the radio station WCHE 1520 AM in West Chester, said on Wednesday he was in the process of hiring Berg to build a communications tower for the station when news of his death came out.
The station was awaiting approval of plans from both the borough and an environmental agency before construction could begin, according to Shur.
"There’s a lot of paperwork to go through, and the area we were looking at was a marsh- land so we had to get clearance," he said."When I do get the OK, I’ll have to look for another contractor."
Michael Berg briefly spoke about Prometheus during a press conference Thursday morning outside his home.
"My son was not over there to make money," Michael Berg said. "My son’s business, which was very profitable before he went to Iraq ..I will make good on anything the company owes anybody, but it’s pretty much going to be defunct."
It is unclear how many employees Prometheus had. Michael Berg spoke of a "foreman" during the press conference. However, Nick Berg traveled to Iraq alone.
Staff Writer Jill Nawrocki contributed to this article.
That's what is being reported -- computer the FBI searched in MN was the one Berg gave Moussaoui.
When I was typing that paragraph into the thread last night (article wasn't on-line) I asked someone I was on IM with if that was the same as the prison and sure enough the tower is right there. Then the article talked about him taking pictures all over Iraq!
That was like a lightening bolt!
We have too many threads on Berg and we all are missing info in putting this together. Can someone start a definitive thread on him with pool of info,,I don't know how. Maybe the ultimate Berg thread or something so we can all go to one place with information. This is a true mystery and we are so good at it, we need a clearing house.
people don't give away computers,,to strangers.
Berg was in Uganda in spring of 1998 and in the Fall of 1999 he happens to show up in Norman at OU the same time Moussaoui was here at OU. Yeah right! This smells more by the hour!
I am not familiar with the this. Could you explain, please?
Thanks!
Becki
Do you know if the computer was a laptop?
Wrong! He gave Moussaoui a computer and email account according to media reports this morning and according to some folks here, he was seen with Moussaoui and the Moussaoui accomplice with the long beard who is a creep individual who used to wander our streets.
They didn't say in the report I heard.
According to our paper, Berg was here in the Fall of 1999 at OU but no one knows when he left Norman.
How much did they make an hour, if you don't mind me asking? Nothing close to 70,000 a week, I assume?
It certainly would make sense considering his buisness at home was non existent and his father lied about it. Nick was carrying a ton of radio/electronic equipment in Iraq.
What IF Berg did work AGAINST America with AlQueda and when he got picked up by Iraqi police and the FBI started QUESTIONING Kid and dad, AlQaeda killed him so as to KILL the trail from them. What say you?
My impression too.
Perfect description of tapping communications for terrorist use.
I knew Okies were generous, but giving computers to total strangers is strange.
I haven't actually been following the gory (or non-gory) details of this... so thank you for the summary of many other inconsistencies.
My first thought was... sounds like presidential material... equivalent to the Kerry flip-flops!
From what I've heard and read about Nick Berg, the CIA would not touch him with a 300-mile pole. Nick Berg was naive, not to mention a dangerous traveler (Israeli passport stamp? What a dufe)
To the contrary, I believe Nick Berg was in fact very anti-Iraq war, very anti-Bush almost the same as his father, Mike Berg, who now blames GWB for having his son crucified, or whatever.
But Nick Berg knew he could not go around mouthing his opposition to the Iraq war and at the same time get a visa to travel in Iraq.
The truth is, there is a fine line in the minds of liberals between supporting what they claim are the "Iraqi people" and supporting the Saddam Hussein crowd who still try and regain power.
How many times have you heard liberals spouting off how the US is opressing the Iraqi people, when what they really mean is that we are going after the Iraqi extremists who continue to kill our soldiers.
Many liberals consider the Saddam underground army to be the same as the Iraqi freedom fighters.
Hope I made sense.
Here is a "tin foil" scenario.
1. He went to Iraq to help the dissidents.
2.He helped by using his technology knowledge to tap into military and/or private contractor communications.
3. The communications provided data to the insurgents that gave them a heads-up of comings and goings of military and contractor travels.
4. The advance knowledge of the routes and times of travel provide the insurgents with the ability to ambush contractors and military.
5. He returns home after setting up the links for the terrorists
6. Something makes the terrorists request his return to Iraq.
7. His return gets the curiosity up of the FBI who detains him with Iraqi help.
8. The FBI finds nothing but suspicions and attempts to convince him to go home.
9. Berg decides to finish his work for terrorists and declines safe passage.
10. Berg meets with terrorists who have decided he is has too dangerous information and is convinced to stage himself as a hostage. Copying other hostages.
11. The end.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.