Tickets to the USS Arizona Memorial that were supposed to be free were routinely distributed to tour companies that sold them with the knowledge of the memorial’s management, according to reports the National Park Service didn’t want the public to see.

A top manager, Frank Middleton, was described as being friends with the head of a tour company, playing golf with him — and working only from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. every day, one report said.

When employees complained about the ticket practices, they were told "to mind their own business," the report said.

The reports shed new light on impropriety and a breakdown in leadership and communication at the USS Arizona Memorial, the most popular tourist attraction in the state, drawing nearly 1.8 million people a year.

A late 2013 park service law enforcement "briefing statement" looked at "improper tour ticket distribution" at the visitor center.

It concluded that commercial tour companies were supposed to reserve free Arizona Memorial tickets online, but were receiving a "large number" of tickets at the park itself, which were supposed to be for walk-up visitors who didn’t have reservations.

Carlton Kramer, vice president of marketing for Pacific Historic Parks, a nonprofit that supports the Arizona Memorial, received stacks of those tickets daily and delivered some to the audio tour desk, where they were sold for $7 as part of an audio tour, according to the briefing statement.

Walk-up tickets were supposed to be distributed only by the park service, the report said. Kramer also passed out walk-up tickets to drivers working for commercial tour companies, the review found.

"The NPS is aware of what is happening," an unnamed investigator said.

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser first reported on the Arizona Memorial ticketing controversy in May.

The watchdog group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, based in Washington, D.C., sought NPS documents through the federal Freedom of Information Act.

The NPS initially withheld the documents, claiming it had the legal right to do so, but PEER appealed and subsequently received the reports with redacted portions.

"These reports show that the USS Arizona Memorial is adrift and has lost its sense of mission," said PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch. PEER is expected to release its own findings Monday.

In addition to the briefing statement, PEER received the results of an "administrative inquiry" to assess the work environment at the park. Dated Nov. 12, 2013, it said a tour company operator was in the parking lot selling tickets for $30, and that one tourist paid $89 for the supposedly free tickets.

"The concern is that tours are receiving unfavorable advantage over walk-in visitors," said the report authored by Maxie Hamilton, equal opportunity manager for the NPS Pacific West Region. "Tour companies can come as they please and acquire more tickets to meet their needs, which in most cases leaves fewer tickets for walk-up visitors."

The report said, "Employees reported sharing their concerns with Frank Middleton (described as overseeing the NPS ticketing and reservation system), but are told to mind their own business."

Hamilton said he spoke to 38 employees and two Pacific Historic Parks board members.

Why tickets were given to the tour groups, and what benefits were received in exchange, was not explained.

"No employee has been offered a reason why memorial tour tickets are being improperly distributed or what may be occurring," the law enforcement statement said.

Paul DePrey, Arizona Memorial superintendent, was characterized as being an absentee landlord, meanwhile.

"Employees almost universally reported that the superintendent is never on-site at the visitor center or even the park," Hamilton said. "They reported that when he is on-site, he mostly stays upstairs in his office and never comes over to the visitor center area or walks the grounds."

In most cases, the report said, park employees did not know where DePrey was when he was working, and "the Hawaii regional office reports having received numerous calls from the park looking for him."

Several people asked DePrey about what was happening with the tickets, and DePrey "told them to mind their own business and referred them to Ranger Middleton," the law enforcement report said.

Comment was sought for this story from DePrey and Middleton. DePrey referred questions for him and Middleton to NPS Pacific West Region spokesman Craig Dalby. Pacific Historic Parks’ Kramer could not be reached for comment Friday.

Dalby said: "The National Park Service is aware of ongoing management challenges at the site. The park management team continues to make improvements in protecting treasured national resources, providing an excellent visitor experience and developing a cohesive workplace for park rangers and our many partners."

Asked whether DePrey, Middleton and Kramer are in the same positions they held before the ticketing scandal became public, Dalby said, "Yes."

"There are no personnel changes planned," Dalby said by email Friday.

Yet another park service investigation in late January found the park had no policies or standards for ticketing operations, providing "ample opportunity for abuse."

A "bazaar-like" atmosphere existed with commercial tour operators working inside the visitor center to pick up, exchange, barter and purchase tickets, it concluded.

Further investigation was recommended into allegations of gifts being accepted from the tour operators.

On top of the ticketing scandal, the visitor center fell into disrepair due to a lack of maintenance just a few years after a $56 million renovation.

The Hamilton report also said "there were numerous issues raised in regard to employee morale. It is safe to say that it is very low and there are no signs of it improving."

The sunken USS Arizona is the grave for sailors and Marines killed in the Dec. 7, 1941, attack.

Arizona Memorial tickets are supposed to be free. The only charge is a $1.50 convenience fee collected by Recreation.gov to cover administration of an online reservation system.

Some companies charge $75 to $120 for a USS Arizona Memorial and around-Oahu tour, respectively.

In 2013, more than 700 tickets a day sometimes were withheld from the walk-up batch out of the 4,350 total tickets that were available, investigators previously determined.

DePrey said in May that he stopped the ticket diversion for audio sales in January when investigators told him it was improper.

He also said before that "the park management team and I care deeply about the park" and that he was working on ways to improve operations following the ticketing review.

In July the park began to offer a limited number of reservable next-day tickets for individuals only, and not for commercial tour operators, Dalby said in September.

Meetings also were held with commercial operators "to discuss the issues and potential solutions, and since then the park has issued commercial services notices to tour operators clarifying park policies related to ticketing and commercial operations," Dalby said at the time.

He added that the park also was updating the language in the permits issued to commercial operators "to better reflect park policies related to ticketing and standards for conduct within the park."

Approximately half of all tickets for the USS Arizona issued each day were also being made available on a walk-up, first-come first-served basis, he said.

Current and past park employees continue to express frustration with operations at the Arizona Memorial.

The Hamilton report from late 2013 said employees didn’t expect real change.

"It is conservative to say that 75 percent of the interviewees were skeptical that anything would come from my interviews," he said.