Pipeline security firm lacks legal status
BISMARCK, N.D. — North Dakota’s governor, top law officer and military leader all said Wednesday they were unaware that a private security firm hired by the developer of the disputed Dakota Access oil pipeline has been operating illegally in the state without a license.
North Dakota’s Private Investigative and Security Board notified TigerSwan in September it was unlicensed and in December rejected its application, citing the alleged criminal history of the company’s president.
Despite that, TigerSwan remained an integral part of the pipeline developer’s security operation and assisted law officers. Internal documents published by online news outlet The Intercept last month make references to planning and communication with law enforcement, the placing of a company liaison in the law enforcement joint operations center, and a meeting with the state attorney general’s office’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation “regarding video and still photo evidence collected for prosecution.”
Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem, the state’s top law enforcement officer, said he did not “recall being made aware” of TigerSwan’s involvement or lack of a license.
Kelly Ivahnenko, a spokeswoman for Gov. Doug Burgum, said the governor-appointed regulatory board was not obligated under state law to inform Burgum of problems with the private security company.
“The governor had no knowledge or communication with the board on this issue,” she said.
The regulatory board this week asked a judge to stop TigerSwan’s armed workers from continuing to monitor the pipeline system and requested fines be levied against the company and its president, James Reese, for operating without a license, a misdemeanor carrying a potential sentence of 30 days in jail and a $1,500 fine.
TigerSwan couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday. Dallas-based pipeline developer Energy Transfer Partners confirmed that it uses TigerSwan for security but declined to comment further.
The pipeline this month began moving oil from western North Dakota to a distribution point in Illinois where it can be shipped to the Gulf Coast, though American Indian tribes who fear environmental harm continue to fight in court. The pipeline was delayed months by the legal battle and protests in North Dakota that resulted in 761 arrests between August and February.
The board alleges in court documents that TigerSwan employees with semi-automatic rifles and handguns protected workers and equipment at construction sites, conducted intelligence on protesters including placing or trying to place undercover agents within the protest groups, and even monitored traffic on a state highway. The board also says TigerSwan is still providing roundthe-clock security along the pipeline in the state.
According to the board, it notified TigerSwan in September that the company wasn’t properly licensed, and the company denied conducting private security in the state but at the same time applied for a license. The board denied the request in December, citing Reese’s alleged criminal history without specifying the offenses. The board said Reese told the group he had never been convicted. A month later, the board rejected the application again, saying it was incomplete.
Maj. Gen. Alan Dohrmann, leader of the state’s National Guard, said he did not know until this week that TigerSwan was operating illegally.