CONTRACTOR RECEIVES PRISON SENTENCE FOR PAYING ARMY OFFICERS BRIBES DURING WAR IN IRAQ

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Former Military Contractor Sentenced to 12 Months in Prison for Paying Bribes to Army Officers during Iraq War

The former president of a defense contractor providing services to the U.S. military in Iraq was sentenced today to 12 months and one day in prison for his role in a scheme to pay more than $1.2 million in bribes to U.S. Army contracting personnel in exchange for being awarded lucrative defense contracts, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Zane David Memeger for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

U.S. District Judge Joel H. Slomsky in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania sentenced Justin W. Lee, 37, of Philadelphia, the former president of Lee Dynamics International (LDI), who pleaded guilty in July 2011 to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery and four substantive counts of bribery.

In connection with his guilty plea, Lee admitted that as the president of LDI and previously as an officer of American Logistics Services (ALS), a Kuwaiti company providing supplies to the U.S. military in Iraq, he paid multiple bribes in the form of cash, airline tickets, trips and hotel stays, among other things, to military contracting personnel in exchange for their agreement to take official action to award lucrative contracts to both LDI and ALS.

Lee’s father and co-defendant, George Lee, who was the CEO of both companies, was sentenced to 54 months in prison in July 2015 for one count of bribery.  This marks the end of a long-running investigation, which began in 2006, that led to the conviction of seven other defendants, including several high-ranking contracting officers.

The U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security – Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated the case, and the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service previously contributed to the investigation.  Trial Attorneys Richard B. Evans and John Keller of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania prosecuted the case.  Mark W. Pletcher and Emily W. Allen of the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of California previously provided substantial assistance.

NAVY PETTY OFFICER CHARGED WITH TAKING BRIBES FOR CLASSIFIED AND INTERNAL U.S. NAVY INFORMATION

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Thursday, April 17, 2014

Navy Petty Officer Based in Japan Charged in International Bribery Scandal

A fourth U.S. Navy official has been charged in a complaint unsealed today with accepting cash, luxury travel and consumer electronics from a foreign defense contractor in exchange for classified and internal U.S. Navy information.

Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy of the Southern District of California, Director Andrew Traver of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) and Deputy Inspector General for Investigations James B. Burch of the U.S. Department of Defense Office of the Inspector General made the announcement.

Petty Officer First Class Dan Layug, 27, who enlisted in the Navy in September 2006, was arrested on April 16, 2014, in San Diego by special agents with NCIS and Defense Criminal Investigative Service.   Layug made his initial appearance today in federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen S. Crawford in the Southern District of California.

According to the complaint, Layug received bribes in return for sending sensitive U.S. Navy information to employees of Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA), a defense contractor.   GDMA CEO Leonard Glenn Francis, 49, of Malaysia, had previously been charged with conspiring to bribe U.S. Navy officials, and GDMA executive Alex Wisidagama, 40, of Singapore, pleaded guilty on March 18, 2014, to defrauding the U.S. Navy.   Two other senior Navy officials – Commander Michael Vannak Khem Misiewicz, 46, and Commander Jose Luis Sanchez, 41 – have been charged separately with bribery conspiracies involving Francis and have pleaded not guilty.   On Dec. 17, 2013, Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Supervisory Special Agent John Bertrand Beliveau II, 44, pleaded guilty to bribery charges for regularly tipping off Francis to the status of the government’s investigation into GDMA.

According to the complaint, Layug worked secretly on behalf of GDMA by providing classified ship schedules and other sensitive U.S. Navy information in exchange for cash, travel expenses, and consumer electronics.   Court records allege that Layug used his position as a logistics specialist at a U.S. Navy facility in Yokosuka, Japan, to gain access to U.S. Navy ship schedules – some of which were classified – and other internal information, and provided this information to GDMA’s vice president of global operations.   In exchange, court records allege, GDMA provided Layug with regular payments, some of which were delivered in envelopes of cash.  The complaint alleges that on May 21, 2012, the vice president of global operations instructed a GDMA accountant that “at the end of each month, we will be providing an allowance to Mr. Dan Layug.   Total of US $1000.   You may pay him the equivalent in Yen.   He will come by the office at the end of each month to see you.”

Court records allege that, in addition to his monthly “allowance,” Layug sought consumer electronics from GDMA.   In an email on March 9, 2012, Layug asked the vice president of global operations “what are the chances of getting the new Ipad 3 [sic]?   Please let me know.”   In another email exchange on May 28, 2013, Layug asked the vice president of global operations for a “bucket list” of items including a high end camera, an iPhone5 cellular phone, a Samsung S4 cellular phone, and an iPad Mini.   Shortly after sending his “bucket list” to the vice president of global operations, Layug stated in an email that “the camera is awesome bro!   Thanks a lot!   Been a while since I had a new gadget!”

In addition to consumer electronics, GDMA allegedly provided Layug and his friends with rooms at luxury hotels throughout Asia.

According to court documents, Layug allegedly undertook steps to conceal his bribery relationship with GDMA by, among other things, describing classified ship schedules using the code word “golf schedules” and opening a bank account in the name of his infant daughter into which he deposited portions of his “allowance.”

The ongoing investigation is being conducted by NCIS, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and the Defense Contract Audit Agency.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark Pletcher and Robert Huie of the Southern District of California, Director of Procurement Fraud Catherine Votaw and Attorney Brian Young of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, and Trial Attorney Wade Weems, on detail to the Fraud Section from the Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction.

The charges contained in the criminal complaint are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed to be not guilty unless and until proven guilty.

COMMISSIONER FOR WEBB COUNTY TEXAS CHARGED WITH ACCEPTING BRIBES

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
Webb County Commissioner Charged with Accepting Bribes in Exchange for Official Acts

Kristopher Michael Montemayor, a county commissioner for Precinct 1 of the Webb County Commissioners Court in Texas, was arrested today on charges of bribery, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

A federal grand jury in the Southern District of Texas returned an indictment on March 18, 2014, that charges Montemayor, 36, of Laredo, Texas, with two counts of federal programs bribery.   The indictment was unsealed following today’s arrest.

According to allegations in the indictment, while serving as a county commissioner, Montemayor solicited and accepted bribes in exchange for promising to perform various official acts.   Montemayor allegedly accepted the use of a 2012 Ford truck, which cost approximately $37,015, in exchange for promising to provide government jobs to both the vehicle’s owner and his spouse.

The indictment further alleges that Montemayor, while serving as a county commissioner, solicited and accepted approximately $11,000 in cash as well as electronics equipment worth approximately $2,700 from a businessman who, unbeknownst to Montemayor, was an undercover law enforcement agent.   The indictment alleges that Montemayor promised to take official action to promote the business interests of the undercover agent in exchange for cash and electronics.

If convicted, Montemayor faces a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison for each bribery charge.   Each charge also carries a maximum $250,000 fine.

The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Laredo Resident Agency.   The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Emily Rae Woods and Mark Cipolletti of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section.

The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until he is proven guilty.

MEN PLEAD GUILTY FOR ROLES IN TRANSPORTATION SCHEME ON U.S. MILITARY BASE

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Georgia Men Plead Guilty to Receiving Bribes in Transportation Scheme at Local Military Base

Two former employees at the Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany (MCLB-Albany) have pleaded guilty to receiving bribes related to a scheme to funnel freight hauling business to a local transportation company resulting in the loss of millions of dollars to the United States government, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore for the Middle District of Georgia.

Mitchell D. Potts, 48, and Jeffrey S. Philpot, 35, both of Sylvester, Ga., each pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge W. Louis Sands in the Middle District of Georgia to one count of bribery of a public official.

During their guilty pleas, Potts, the former Traffic Office Supervisor for the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) at MCLB-Albany, and Philpot, the former Lead Transportation Assistant in the Traffic Office, admitted to participating in a scheme whereby Potts and Philpot assisted Person A, the owner of several local commercial trucking companies, in obtaining trucking business from the DLA in exchange for the payment of cash and other things of value. Both defendants admitted that they took a variety of steps designed to push business to Person A and his companies, including: 1) delaying shipments for a period of hours or days, thereby reducing the time available to fulfill the shipping request and assuring that it would be awarded to a local trucking company, usually one owned by Person A; 2) "short loading" shipments awarded to Person A’s companies so that it would appear to require more trucks than necessary to move the subject freight, resulting in additional loads being awarded to Person A’s companies; 3) indicating that removable gooseneck (RGN) trailers were required for shipments, which resulted in many loads being directed to Person A’s companies because they always had RGNs available; and 4) creating "ghost shipments" where Person A billed the DLA for shipments that were never made. Both Potts and Philpot admitted that their actions led to millions of dollars of overcharges to the government.

Potts and Philpot admitted that they received cash payments from Person A when he visited the traffic office, sometimes multiple times per week. They also admitted receiving lunches provided by Person A several times a week during the relevant period and that they also received gift cards and other things of value. Potts admitted receiving approximately $209,000 in kickbacks from Person A during the roughly three-year scheme. Philpot admitted receiving approximately $523,000 in cash and other things of value from Person A during the same period.

At sentencing, Potts and Philpot each face a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a fine of not more than twice the pecuniary loss to the government. As part of their plea agreements with the United States, both Potts and Philpot have agreed to forfeit the bribe proceeds they received from the scheme, as well as to pay full restitution to the Department of Defense. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 15, 2013.

The case is being investigated by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, with assistance from the Dougherty County District Attorney’s Office Economic Crime Unit, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the Defense Logistics Agency Office of the Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Richard B. Evans and J.P. Cooney of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney K. Alan Dasher of the Middle District of Georgia.

FORMER PAROLE OFFICER SENTENCED TO 20 MONTHS IN PRISON FOR TAKING BRIBES

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Former Texas State Parole Officer Sentenced for Taking Bribes from Assigned Parolee

A former Texas state parole officer was sentenced to 20 months in prison today for taking bribes from one of her assigned parolees in exchange for not reporting his parole violations, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division.

Nichelle Derricks, 38, of Cedar Hill, Texas, pleaded guilty on Jan. 22, 2013, to one count of honest services wire fraud in the Northern District of Texas.

According to court documents, while serving as a Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) parole officer, Derricks and one of her assigned parolees developed an improper relationship in which Derricks secretly used her official position with TDCJ to enrich herself and others by soliciting and receiving cash payments, gifts, furniture, household goods and items, food and beverages and other things of value from the parolee in exchange for favorable official action benefitting the parolee. The scheme was conducted without the authorization, knowledge or approval of TDCJ and contrary to TDCJ procedures and requirements.

Derricks admitted she repeatedly failed to report the parolee for violating the terms of his parole, including, among other things, failing to report him for traveling outside Texas without prior, written approval and for engaging in prohibited financial transactions.

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Dallas Field Office, with assistance from the U.S. Secret Service and the TDCJ Office of Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Edward P. Sullivan of the Justice Department Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section.

FORMER REGIONAL DIRECTOR OF FEDERAL PROTECTIVE SERVICE PLEADS GUILTY TO ACCEPTING BRIBES

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Former Regional Director of Federal Protective Service Pleads Guilty to Accepting Bribes from Government Contractor

Derek Matthews, 46, of Harwood, Md., pleaded guilty today to accepting bribes from a government contracting company in exchange for using his position to help the company find and win contracts.

Neil H. MacBride, U. S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Mythili Raman, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, and Charles K. Edwards, U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Deputy Inspector General, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema.

Matthews was charged by criminal information on April 11, 2013, with one count of conspiracy to commit bribery. Matthews faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison when he is sentenced on July 19, 2013.

Matthews served as Deputy Assistant Director for Operations for the DHS’s Federal Protective Services (FPS) and was later promoted to FPS Regional Director for the National Capital Region. In the fall of 2011, Matthews agreed with Keith Hedman, an executive at an Arlington, Va., security service consulting company referred to as Company B in court records, that in exchange for a monthly payment from Company B and a percentage of any new business obtained, Matthews would use his position to help Company B find and win U.S. government contracts, including with FPS. Matthews engaged in a series of official acts, including lobbying of government officials and sharing of information with Hedman, in an effort to obtain business for Hedman and Company B. In turn, Hedman and Company B paid Matthews three monthly payments totaling $12,500.

Hedman pleaded guilty on March 18, 2013, to conspiracy to commit bribery in connection with Matthews’ scheme, along with conspiracy to commit major government fraud as part of a separate scheme to fraudulently obtain more than $31 million in government contract payments that should have gone to disadvantaged small businesses.

This case was investigated by the Washington Field Office for the DHS Office of the Inspector General (OIG), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration OIG, the Small Business Administration OIG, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the General Services Administration OIG. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Chad Golder and Ryan Faulconer are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

FORMER GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEE PLEADS GUILTY TO TAKING BRIBES

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Georgia Woman Admits to Taking Bribes for the Award of Government Contracts

A former employee at the Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany pleaded guilty today to receiving bribes related to the award of contracts for machine products, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore for the Middle District of Georgia.

Michelle Rodriguez, 32, of Albany, Ga., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge W. Louis Sands in the Middle District of Georgia to one count of bribery of a public official.

During her guilty plea, Rodriguez, who worked as a supply technician in the Maintenance Center Albany (MCA), admitted to participating in a scheme to award contracts for machine products to companies operated by Thomas J. Cole and Frederick Simon, both of whom pleaded guilty to bribery charges in January 2013.

According to court documents, the MCA is responsible for rebuilding and repairing ground combat and combat support equipment, much of which has been used in military missions in Afghanistan, Iraq and other parts of the world. To accomplish the scheme, Rodriguez would transmit bid solicitations to Simon by fax or email, usually following up with a text message specifying how much the company seeking the contract should bid. Simon, with Cole’s knowledge, would then bid the amount specified by Rodriguez on each order, which was normally higher than fair market value. Rodriguez was paid $75.00 cash per order. Rodriguez admitted during today’s hearing that she awarded Cole and Simon’s companies nearly 1,300 machine product orders, all in exchange for bribes.

Rodriguez also admitted that in 2011, she began routing some orders through a second company, owned by Cole, because the volume of orders MCA placed with the first company was so high. Rodriguez admitted receiving approximately $161,000 in bribes during the nearly two-year scheme. Cole and Simon previously admitted to personally receiving approximately $209,000 and $74,500 in proceeds from the scheme, respectively. Rodriguez, Cole and Simon all conceded that the total loss to the Department of Defense from overcharges associated with the machine product orders placed during the scheme was approximately $907,000.

At sentencing, Rodriguez faces a maximum potential penalty of 15 years in prison and a fine of twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. As part of her plea agreement with the United States, Rodriguez agreed to forfeit the bribe proceeds she received from the scheme, as well as to pay full restitution to the Department of Defense. The plea agreement also required her to resign her position at the MCA. Sentencing is scheduled for April 25, 2013.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Richard B. Evans and J.P. Cooney of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney K. Alan Dasher of the Middle District of Georgia. The case is being investigated by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, with assistance from the Dougherty County District Attorney’s Office Economic Crime Unit and the Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General Defense Criminal Investigative Service.

MAN ADMITS TO TAKING BRIBES TO ALLOW THEFT OF EQUIPMENT FROM MARINE BASE

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Georgia Man Admits Taking Bribes to Allow $1 Million Theft of Government Equipment from Marine Base

A retired employee of the Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany (MCLB-Albany) pleaded guilty today to receiving bribes in exchange for allowing heavy equipment to be stolen from the base for resale, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore for the Middle District of Georgia.

Shelby C. Janes, 67, of Albany, Ga., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge W. Louis Sands in the Middle District of Georgia to one count of bribery of a public official.

During his guilty plea, Janes, the former civilian inventory control manager of the distribution management center at MCLB-Albany, admitted to participating in a scheme in which he assisted an individual, referred to in court documents as "Person A," in stealing heavy equipment – such as cranes, bulldozers and front-end loaders – from the base. Person A, the owner of a commercial trucking business that was routinely contracted by the MCLB’s Defense Logistics Agency, then arranged to sell the equipment to private purchasers.

According to court documents, while working at the distribution management center, Janes was responsible for supervising a number of employees in the inventorying of obsolete equipment returning from the Fleet Marine Corps. This equipment was sent to MCLB-Albany for one of two purposes: to be demilitarized and disposed of through eventual sale or destruction, or to be rehabilitated, repaired and redistributed to the Fleet Marine Corps. To accomplish the theft scheme, Janes and one of his employees, referred to in court documents as "Public Official A," facilitated the theft of the equipment, including by letting the equipment be driven off the base. Janes admitted that to facilitate the unlawful removal of the equipment, he typically prepared a false DD Form 1348 authorizing the Defense Logistics Agency to release the equipment to Person A, and that the equipment was then sold to private purchasers for tens of thousands of dollars.

Janes also admitted that he received payments from Person A after the sale of the stolen equipment, often delivered to him by Public Official A on behalf of Person A in the form of a check or cash, totaling approximately $98,500 during the approximately 15-month scheme. Janes admitted that the total loss to the Department of Defense from the theft of government equipment was approximately $1,075,000.

At sentencing, Janes faces a maximum potential penalty of 15 years in prison and a fine of twice the gain or loss from the offense. As part of his plea agreement with the United States, Janes agreed to forfeit the bribe proceeds he received from the scheme, as well as to pay full restitution to the Department of Defense. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Richard B. Evans and J.P. Cooney of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney K. Alan Dasher of the Middle District of Georgia. The case is being investigated by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, with assistance from the Dougherty County District Attorney’s Office Economic Crime Unit and the Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General Defense Criminal Investigative Service.

AMERICAN SAMOA EDUCATION OFFICIAL CONVICTED OF OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE AND WITNESS TAMPERING

Thursday, January 26, 2012
The following excerpt is from the Department of Justice website:

“WASHINGTON – Paul Solofa, the director of the school lunch program for the government of the U.S. Territory of American Samoa, was convicted today in relation to his efforts to obstruct a federal grand jury and law enforcement investigation into a bribery scheme, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

After a four-day trial, a federal jury in the District of Columbia found Solofa, 50, guilty of one count of witness tampering and one count of obstruction of justice.

According to evidence presented at trial, in approximately early 2008, federal authorities began conducting an investigation into allegations of cash bribes and kickbacks paid by vendors to officials of the American Samoa government in connection with the government’s purchase of school bus parts and services.

According to the trial evidence, Solofa met on April 3, 2009, with a school bus parts vendor who told Solofa that the FBI was interested in interviewing the vendor regarding the bus parts investigation. Solofa, in a recorded meeting, allegedly told the vendor, “They cannot do anything with cash. Nothing. They cannot do anything with cash. They cannot track down you on cash. Because even if you say you gave me cash I'll tell them ‘no.’ They cannot take your word on cash. Because that’s hearsay. So you know, but the best thing for you to do is ‘nope, I never give them any cash, I never’ – because that will open up the whole operation . . . You get what I am saying. All you do is just tell them ‘no, yes, no, yes,’ period.”

In addition, according to the evidence presented at trial, Solofa met on April 14, 2009, with the same bus parts vendor, who told Solofa that a grand jury subpoena requiring production of specific documents and records, some of which related to Solofa and to the bus parts kickback scheme, would be issued shortly. After discussing how to respond, Solofa told the vendor that, as for documents he did not want to produce, “ [t]he only way to do it with those copies is burn it. That way, they won’t see it, and you won’t worry that they might see it, you know. . . .  Just burn it, and nobody has a copy.”

Solofa faces a maximum penatly of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the witness tampering charge and 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the obstruction of justice charge. Sentencing is scheduled for April 27, 2012.

This case is being prosecuted by Principal Deputy Chief Raymond N. Hulser and Trial Attorney Daniel A. Petalas of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section. The case is being investigated by the FBI in Hawaii; the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Education; and the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of the Interior.”

ARMY CAPTAIN SENTENCED TO PRISON FOR TAKING BRIBES IN AFGHANISTAN

The following excerpt is from the Department of Justice website:

Monday, December 12, 2011
“Former US Army National Guard Captain Sentenced to 15 Months in Prison for Receiving Bribes at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan
WASHINGTON – A former captain in the U.S. Army National Guard was sentenced today in federal court in Chicago to 15 months in prison for receiving bribes from military contractors in return for the award of Department of Defense (DOD) contracts during his deployment to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division.
John Mihalczo, 47, of Homosassa, Fla., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly of the Northern District of Illinois. In addition to his prison term, Mihalczo was sentenced to one year of supervised release and was ordered to pay $115,000 in restitution to the Department of Defense.
Mihalczo pleaded guilty in June 2009 to a criminal information charging him with three counts of bribery. According to the information and other documents filed in the case, Mihalczo was deployed to Bagram Airfield from March 2003 until March 2004. Mihalczo was, among other things, the motor pool officer, who controlled a large fleet of leased vehicles, as well as a contracting officer’s representative, who oversaw the delivery of various goods at Bagram Airfield, including concrete barriers.
While serving in Afghanistan, Mihalczo accepted approximately $35,000 in cash and money orders from two different military contractors in return for exercising his influence in the award of DOD contracts. Mihalczo also participated in another scheme with another military contractor, in which Mihalczo fraudulently verified the delivery of concrete barriers that were never delivered to Bagram Airfield. As part of this scheme, Mihalczo and the military contractor split $80,000 in overpayments made by DOD. In total, the loss to the United States from these offenses was at least as much as $115,000. Mihalczo is the ninth defendant sentenced in this investigation. Nine additional defendants remain to be sentenced.

This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Mark W. Pletcher of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section , and investigated by the Army Criminal Investigations Division, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and the Department of the Air Force, Office of Special Investigations, with assistance from the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction.”

ABRAMOFF COLLEAGUE GETS 20 MONTHS IN PRISON FOR CONSPIRACY AND OTHER CRIMES

The following excerpt is from the Department of Justice website:

Wednesday, October 26, 2011
“WASHINGTON – Kevin A. Ring, a former lobbyist who worked with Jack A. Abramoff, was sentenced today to 20 months in prison for his role in a scheme to corrupt public officials by providing an illegal stream of things of value, including vacations, employment for a congressman’s wife, meals, drinks, and high-priced tickets to exclusive concerts and sporting events, the Department of Justice announced.
Ring, 41, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ellen S. Huvelle in the District of Columbia. Judge Huvelle also sentenced Ring to 30 months of supervised release following his prison term.
On Nov. 15, 2010, a jury convicted former lobbyist Ring of corrupting public officials. The jury found Ring guilty on one count of conspiring to corrupt congressional and executive branch officials by providing things of value to them and their staff members in order to induce or reward those who took official actions benefitting Ring and his clients. In addition, Ring was convicted of one count of paying a gratuity to a public official and three counts of honest services wire fraud for engaging in a scheme to deprive U.S. citizens of their right to the honest services of certain public officials. The jury acquitted Ring on three counts of honest services fraud. A previous federal jury failed to reach a verdict in the case and the court declared a mistrial.
According to evidence presented at trial, as a lobbyist working in Washington, D.C., Ring solicited and obtained business throughout the United States, including with Native American tribal governments operating and interested in operating gambling casinos. Trial testimony established that Ring sought to further his clients’ interests by lobbying public officials in the legislative and executive branches of the federal government. Evidence at trial established Ring to be the “COO of Team Abramoff,” and at one of his sentencing hearings, the court also found that evidence at trial established that Ring was a supervisor of the conspiracy.

Ring and his co-conspirators identified public officials who would perform official actions that would assist Ring and his clients, and then groomed those public officials by providing things of value with the intent of making those public officials more receptive to requests on behalf of their clients in the future. These things of value included all-expenses-paid travel, meals, drinks, golf outings, tickets to professional sporting events, concerts and other events, and an employment opportunity for the wife of a congressman. According to evidence introduced at trial, these things of value were often billed to Ring’s and Abramoff’s clients. Evidence established that Ring and his co-conspirators engaged in this illegal conduct with current and former congressional staff members, including chiefs of staff, as well as officials at the Department of Justice and the White House.
Evidence at trial demonstrated the nature of Ring’s lobbying efforts and his attempts to corrupt and reward public officials. In one e-mail message, Ring instructed his co-conspirators to “thank your friends on the Hill and in the Administration. In fact, thank them over and over again this week – preferably for long periods of time and at expensive establishments.” On another occasion, Ring described to a co-conspirator lobbyist what he expected of a public official who had attended a sporting event: “Glad he got a chance to relax. Now he can pay us back.” Similarly, Ring e-mailed a co-conspirator public official and stated: “You are going to eat free off our clients. Need to get us some [appropriations] money.” Testimony at trial from Ring’s co-conspirators described Ring joking about corrupting public officials by saying, “Hello quid, where’s the pro quo.”
Evidence presented at trial demonstrated that Ring corruptly sought assistance from public officials on numerous client projects, such as appropriations and authorizations, congressional letters to executive branch entities, as well as meetings and other legislative and official actions. Evidence at trial showed that Ring corruptly sought, among other actions, $14 million in congressional transportation appropriations and an additional $7 million from the Department of Justice to build a jail.

Ring remains charged with an additional two counts of obstructing justice. Those charges stem from alleged efforts by Ring to thwart criminal and congressional investigations by preventing the reporting of his criminal conduct to federal authorities. The court severed those two counts and Ring is scheduled to stand trial at a later date. Ring is presumed innocent of these charges until proven guilty in a court of law.
To date, 20 individuals, including lobbyists and public officials, have pleaded guilty or have been convicted at trial in connection with the investigation into the activities of Abramoff and his associates. Abramoff pleaded guilty in January 2006 to conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, honest services fraud and tax evasion. He was sentenced in September 2008 to 48 months in prison.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Chief Nathaniel B. Edmonds of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Deputy Chief Peter Koski of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section. The investigation of this case is being conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General.”