WASHINGTON -- Haskell Blake, a pilot for Northwest Airlines, was stunned when two FBI agents showed up on his doorstep recently to question him about his activities when he was an employee of Tyson Foods more than 11 years ago.
The agents said they were assisting in an independent counsel's investigation of Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy, who has been accused of improperly taking gratuities from Tyson Foods and other agriculture companies.
But Mr. Blake said the agent asked him a broad range of questions that seemed entirely unrelated to the Espy matter:
Was he aware of any drug use by Tyson family members? Did he ever offer bribes to officials in Mexico when he flew there on business for Tyson Foods? Did he ever take envelopes filled with cash to the governor's office in Little Rock, Ark.?
Mr. Blake is one of numerous Tyson employees, both past and present, who have been interviewed recently by investigators in connection with the Espy investigation being conducted by independent counsel Donald Smaltz, a noted Los Angeles attorney.
The broad scope of the questioning -- combined with a few provocative public statements by Mr. Smaltz regarding the investigation -- have precipitated an outcry from lawyers representing President Clinton, the administration and Tyson Foods, all of whom question whether Mr. Smaltz, a Republican, has gone far beyond his original assignment.
When he was appointed by the U.S. Court of Appeals on Sept. 10, Mr. Smaltz predicted that he would need six months to investigate allegations that Mr. Espy illegally accepted sports tickets, transportation and entertainment from Tyson and other companies regulated by the Agriculture Department.
But recently, as he expanded his probe, Mr. Smaltz said that he might not be finished until sometime in 1996. He has hired 30 employees and maintains two offices, one in Washington and the other near Tyson headquarters in Springdale, Ark.
Mr. Espy, meanwhile, has resigned under pressure from the White House as agriculture secretary, effective Dec. 31. He is expected to be replaced shortly by former Rep. Dan Glickman of Kansas.
Tyson Attorney Thomas C. Green said Mr. Blake was asked about trip itineraries and public officials who flew aboard the Tyson planes more than a decade ago. When he denied allegations against Tyson, according to Mr. Green, he was asked by his interrogators whether his current employer, Northwest Airlines, would be upset to know he had lied to them.
"These kinds of veiled threats are unconscionable and unprofessional," said Mr. Green, who called on Mr. Smaltz to "stop these excursions beyond the confines of your jurisdiction."