WASHINGTON — U.S. government prosecutors are considering weapons charges against former executives at Blackwater Worldwide over allegations the private security company illegally stockpiled automatic rifles at its headquarters, The Associated Press has learned.

Senior Justice Department officials are reviewing a draft indictment against former president Gary Jackson, former Blackwater general counsel Andrew Howell, and a third man who used to work at the firm’s armory, people close to the case told the AP. A decision is not expected until at least next month.

Blackwater has repeatedly been under federal scrutiny — from the FBI to Congress to agencies that have hired the firm. While some of the company’s guards have faced charges for their actions overseas, Blackwater’s executives have managed to weather a range of investigations.

Any indictment would be unwelcome news at a business trying to rehabilitate its image since a 2007 shooting involving Blackwater guards in Baghdad left 17 people dead. Under a new name, Xe, the company is trying to win Defense Department approval to train police in Afghanistan. The contract could be worth up to $1 billion but has drawn the ire of some in Congress.

The potential charges stem from a raid conducted by federal agents in 2008 that seized 22 weapons, among them 17 AK-47s.

Multiple law enforcement officials familiar with the case said investigators are trying to determine if Blackwater obtained the official letterhead of a local sheriff to create a false justification for buying the guns. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the investigation.

Federal law prohibits private parties from buying fully automatic weapons registered after 1986, but does let law enforcement agencies have them.

Xe spokesman Mark Corallo said the company has “fully cooperated with this investigation and we will have no further comment.”

Jackson, who left Blackwater along with other executives during a management shake-up last year, said during a brief phone conversation Monday that he would not be able to talk about federal charges and did not know anything about any that might be looming.

“I haven’t heard a single, solitary word,” Jackson said before ending the phone call. Attempts to reach Howell for comment Monday were not successful.

In a 2008 interview with the AP, Jackson and other Blackwater executives said the company provided a local sheriff’s office in North Carolina a place to store weapons, calling the gesture a “professional courtesy.”

Blackwater changed its name to Xe Services after its security guards were accused of killing unarmed Iraqi civilians more than two years ago. Those charges were later thrown out of court after a judge found prosecutors mishandled evidence.

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Baker reported from Raleigh, North Carolina. Associated Press Writer Matt Apuzzo in Washington contributed to this report.

Gary Jackson Photo by The Associated Press file

Gerry Broome