TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — An internal investigation of the Kansas National Guard has raised alarms about “toxic leadership.”

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the investigation started in 2013 amid renewed allegations that Guard recruiters were pressured by superiors to forge documents to clear unqualified applicants or speed processing of paperwork. The inquiry was closed in 2015.

The lieutenant colonel who started the inquiry concluded that five Guard members warranted dismissal from military service, demotion in rank or relief from assigned duties.

Official reports of the probe emphasize that Maj. Gen. Lee Tafanelli was urged to end a management culture that protects wrongdoers. Tafanelli declined to be interviewed but responded in an opinion page column submitted to The Capital-Journal that the Guard works to “thoroughly and impartially investigate” wrongdoing.