FBI phone tap cut due to unpaid bill

A telephone company cut off an FBI international wiretap after the agency failed to pay its bill on time, according to a US government audit.

The US Justice Department's inspector general faulted the FBI for poor handling of money used in undercover investigations, which it said made the agency vulnerable to theft and mishandled invoices.

It cited the case in which a wiretap under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which governs electronic spying in terrorism and intelligence cases, was disrupted due to an overdue bill.

'Late payments have resulted in telecommunications carriers actually disconnecting phone lines established to deliver surveillance results to the FBI, resulting in lost evidence' the audit said.

Inspector general spokeswoman Cynthia Schnedar said she could provide no additional details on the disrupted wiretap.

Much of the report contained sensitive law-enforcement information and was not released, she said.