California IN BRIEF : SAN DIEGO : Engineer Acquitted of Fraud Charges

A federal jury has acquitted a senior Cubic Corp. engineer of charges he falsified test results on mine detectors to be used by the Army. “It’s been a long time. It’s been a huge upheaval in my life,” Dennis B. Fink, 41, said after the verdict. “It’s virtually ruined my career.” U.S. Atty. William Braniff said he was disappointed, but said the case sent a message that “defense contractors at all levels will be fully accountable if found to be involved in contract fraud.” Fink, engineering project manager for Cubic’s $7.3-million mine detector program, was charged in the 1988 indictment with participation in a massive fraud. Prosecutors alleged inferior workmanship and said that manipulation of test results on land-mine detectors was allegedly overlooked in order to achieve favorable results. Fink was acquitted on two fraud-related counts in August, but the jury deadlocked on 21 other charges. Another Cubic employee, William B. Bauder, also was acquitted.