Hawaiian defense contractor behind strange contributions boosting Collins’ re-election

A $150,000 donation to a super PAC created to support the re-election of Sen. Susan Collins has been linked to Hawaii-based defense contractor Navatek LLC, which had been awarded a multi-million dollar contract by a sub-committee led by Maine’s senior senator.

The 1820 PAC, which is backed by a handful of billionaires with ties to President Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, was the subject of an ethics complaint filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) last week for accepting a mysterious donation from what appeared to be a shell company, incorporated as the “Society of Young Women Scientist and Engineers.”

Days later, Honolulu Civil Beat D.C. reporter Nick Grube reported that the Society of Young Women Scientist and Engineers’ sole agent, Jennifer Lam, is likely Tiffany Jennifer Lam, the wife of Navatek CEO Martin Lao.

So far, I've uncovered a number of curiosities. One is that the middle and last name of the defense contractor's wife — Jennifer Lam — are the same as the sole registered agent for the company… pic.twitter.com/OKkA5uS9Bt — Nick Grube (@nickgrube) February 7, 2020

In August 2019, Navatek was awarded an $8 million contract from the U.S. Navy Office of Naval Research. Collins, joined by Lao and other members of Navatek’s leadership team, announced the award together at a press event in Portland.

“As a senior member of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, I strongly advocated for the funding that made this research possible and am so proud of the work Navatek and other Maine industries do to support our Navy and our nation’s defense,” Collins said at the time.

The six-figure donation is not the only boost that Collins has apparently received from people associated with Navatek. Records show that since May 2019 Jennifer Lam has also donated $5600, or the maximum annual contribution allowed by an individual, to Collins’ reelection campaign. Navatek’s chief financial officer Clifford Chen and company accountant Lawrence Lum Kee have each donated $5600 to Collins, as did others associated with the company.

Many of the the donations were made on the same day, Aug. 18, which was less than two weeks after Collins visited Navatek’s offices. Joann Nakano Lam and three people all named some variation of “Christopher M. Lam” also gave maximum contributions on that day.

Top photo: Senator Collins stands with Navatek leadership before touring their Portland office last August. | Official photo