Prometheus 6

Bloch's office confirmed a Wall Street Journal report that he had hired Geeks On Call, a commercial computer service, to "scrub" the hard drive of his computer, and that the technicians scrubbed the hard drives of laptop computers used by two aides. Bloch said he took that action after malfunctions led him to believe a virus was destroying his files.

But the process used by the technicians to wipe the hard drives, Bloch's office confirmed, was more thorough than necessary to kill a virus. The effort raised questions, two officials close to the case said, about whether Bloch was attempting to obstruct the OPM investigation -- an allegation that he denies. 

U.S. Special Counsel Says He Won't Provide Files
Official Calls Personal Records Not Relevant to OPM Probe
By Elizabeth Williamson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, November 30, 2007; A03

A U.S. official overseeing a probe of potential White House misconduct declared through a spokesman yesterday that he will not give federal investigators copies of personal files that he deleted from his office computer.

The decision by Special Counsel Scott J. Bloch escalates the confrontation between the Bush appointee and the White House, each of which is investigating the other.

Bloch's office is tasked with upholding laws against whistle-blower retaliation and partisan politicking in federal agencies. Earlier this year, Bloch directed lawyers in his office to look into charges that former Bush adviser Karl Rove inappropriately deployed government employees in Republican political campaigns.

Bloch had previously been targeted by the White House, which in 2005 asked the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to investigate allegations that Bloch had retaliated against whistle-blowers among his own staff members and improperly dismissed whistle-blower cases brought to the agency by others.

Bloch said in a written statement that the personal computer records requested by the OPM are not relevant to its investigation, which he earlier called a "fishing expedition."