A fresh round of allegations of contractor abuses in Iraq turned some heads at a Senate panel hearing last week when the P-word was added to the usual lineup of intimidation, fraud, waste, and looting.    

Three whistleblowers appeared before the Senate Democratic Policy Committee panel on Monday to share stories of rampant misbehavior by private contractors in Iraq, including the use of armored cars to shuttle prostitutes from Kuwait into Iraq.

The prostitutes were safely driven to Baghdad hotels run by the private contracting firm, while high-risk mission areas were left with insufficient numbers of armored cars, leading to the death of at least one serviceman, according to a former employee. Fraudulent billing was also taking place, the contractor said, on an environmental project where bridges were supposed to be built but were never completed.

Congress Daily reported that another panel witness talked of fellow contractors looting government offices and establishing a system to sell the pilfered artwork, rugs, crystal, and gold on the Internet. One whistleblower alleged he was locked in a room at gunpoint, beaten by security guards, then fired and left stranded in Iraq as retaliation for reporting violations to company officials.

Panel aides said allegations made by the witnesses were passed along to the Department of Justice for further investigation.