Hoekstra accuses CIA of lying

WEST MICHIGAN (NEWSCHANNEL 3) - In 2001, a missionary mom and her young daughter from West Michigan were killed by Drug Enforcement Agents in Peru.

The plane carrying Roni and Charity Bowers was mistaken for a drug-smuggling plane. Mother and daughter were hit by the same bullet. Roni's husband, Jim, and the couple's son survived the crash that followed.

On Thursday, Congressman Peter Hoekstra of Holland accused the CIA of lying and covering up those lies. Hoekstra says rogue CIA employees tried to block congressional and federal investigators from looking into the deaths, and he says they operated outside of the law.

Hoekstra says an inspector general report shows CIA workers knew about repeated serious issues with the drug-enforcement program that shot down the plane, but took no action to fix those issues.

"I hope that the people who lied to Congress and those who participated in the process of Bowers' plane being shot down, and loss of innocent life, that those people are held accountable," Hoekstra said.

Hoekstra says he contacted Jim Bowers by email, letting him know of the findings.

Newschannel 3 spoke with the folks at Jim Bowers church near Muskegon, they told us he is now a missionary in Mozambique.