Ex-defense contractor CEO enters fraud guilty plea

[cbhope1030]

Jul 14, 3:52 PM EDT


Ex-defense contractor CEO enters fraud guilty plea

By CHRISTINE ARMARIO
Associated Press Writer

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g94ejjSVfJSIl2iMN80qyUsvuDFAD99EE3Q80

[snookums1]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THURSDAY, APRIL 9, 2009
WWW.USDOJ.GOV AT
(202) 514-2007
TDD (202) 514-1888



TWO DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE CONTRACTORS CHARGED IN BRIBERY CONSPIRACY RELATED TO DOD CONTRACTS IN AFGHANISTAN

Lebanese Contracting Company Also Charged in Conspiracy

WASHINGTON — Two Department of Defense (DOD) contractors were charged with conspiracy and bribery relating to their roles involving DOD contracts in Afghanistan, the Department of Justice today announced. A Lebanese contracting company is also charged with participating in the same conspiracy.

The criminal complaint, unsealed today and originally filed on April 3, 2009, in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., charges Dinorah Cobos with bribery and conspiracy to commit bribery. Cobos, a U.S. citizen living in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, worked as a contractor with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at the Afghanistan Engineer District in Kabul, Afghanistan. The criminal complaint also charged Afghanistan Engineer District contractor Raymond Azar, a citizen of Lebanon, with conspiracy to commit bribery, and Sima Salazar Group, a Lebanese military contracting company, with bribery and conspiracy to commit bribery.

Cobos and Azar were located in Afghanistan at the time the charges were filed. They were taken into U.S. custody and transferred to the United States, with the authorization of Afghan authorities. Cobos and Azar made their initial appearance on Thursday, April 9, 2009, in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge T. Rawle Jones Jr., in Alexandria, Va.

According to the court documents, beginning in 2008, Cobos and Azar conspired to bribe a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers contracting officer in exchange for approval of payment of fraudulent invoices on contracts that Sima Salazar Group held with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Afghanistan. The court documents allege that Cobos offered to pay the contracting officer up to 1.5 percent of any payments made by U.S. Corps of Army Engineers to Sima Salazar Group and that $16,789 in bribe money was, in fact, wired to the contracting officer in the United States.

“We will aggressively prosecute military contractors who attempt to bribe government officials in order to line their own pockets,” said Scott D. Hammond, Acting Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department’s Antitrust Division. “The alleged conduct is particularly egregious because the contracts at issue were intended to assist U.S. soldiers abroad serving their country.”

“The FBI remains committed to ensuring a fair and honest procurement process,” said Assistant Director Kenneth W. Kaiser of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. “Working with our partners, we will continue to pursue all individuals who engage in bid rigging, bribery or other criminal conduct that impact our U.S. military operations and soldiers overseas.”

“Today’s announcement is a testament to our solid and continued partnership with the Department of Justice and other law enforcement agencies in the fight against fraud and greed here and abroad,” said Brig. Gen. Rodney Johnson, commander of the U.S. Army’s Criminal Investigation Command.

“The Department of Defense requires contractors to adhere to ethical standards designed to guarantee the integrity of the acquisition process,” said Sharon Woods, Director of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service. “Individuals who engage in disreputable activity which compromises the process undermine principles of fair and open competition government agencies strive to support. The Defense Criminal Investigative Service remains committed to ensuring military contractors who engage in fraudulent activity are held firmly accountable.”

“As part of its continuing work to prevent fraud, the Afghanistan Engineer District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers actively supported these agencies in their investigation. The developments of this case should serve as a warning to other contractors of the consequences they face for criminal actions aimed at the United States and the people of Afghanistan,” said Col. Thomas E. O’Donovan, Commander of the Afghanistan Engineer District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Cobos faces up to 15 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 or twice the thing of value offered for the bribery count, and Cobos and Azar each face up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for the conspiracy count. Sima Salazar Group faces fines of up to $500,000 for bribery and $500,000 for conspiracy. The maximum fine for each of these violations may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine.

This case is being prosecuted by the Antitrust Division’s National Criminal Enforcement Section, with assistance from the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. The investigation of this case is being conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and members of the International Contract Corruption Task Force (ICCTF). The ICCTF is a joint law enforcement agency task force that seeks to detect, investigate and dismantle corruption and contract fraud resulting from U.S. Overseas Contingency Operations, including in Afghanistan, Iraq and Kuwait. Additional assistance was provided by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Today’s charges reflect the Department’s commitment to protecting U.S. taxpayers from procurement fraud through its creation of the National Procurement Fraud Task Force. The National Procurement Fraud Initiative, announced in October 2006, is designed to promote the early detection, identification, prevention and prosecution of procurement fraud associated with the increase in contracting activity for national security and other government programs.

Anyone with information concerning bid rigging, bribery or other criminal conduct regarding DOD contracts is urged to call the Antitrust Division’s National Criminal Enforcement Section at 202-307-6694; the FBI at 800-225-5324; Defense Criminal Investigative Service at 800-424-9098 or hotline@dodig.mil; or Army Criminal Investigation Division at www.cid.army.mil.

http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/public/press_releases/2009/244643.htm

[snookums1]

Members of the House Armed Services Committee said Thursday they were saddened and appalled at the number of military officers and civilian officials implicated in as much as $6 billion in contract fraud in Iraq and by the mismanagement that left 190,000 weapons intended for Iraqi security forces unaccounted for.

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0907/092107cdam1.htm

It seems to be an ongoing common problem. It is nice to know that something finally is being done about it.

[Brat2002]

Jul 14, 3:52 PM EDT


Ex-defense contractor CEO enters fraud guilty plea

By CHRISTINE ARMARIO
Associated Press Writer

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g94ejjSVfJSIl2iMN80qyUsvuDFAD99EE3Q80

Murtha is a Democrat. He might have helped them get the contract, but isn't named in the case, but then I would guess that depends on who is doing the investigating. I wonder if he will ever make a comment on this. When they clam up rather than immediately condemn such actions, it always makes me wonder why.
IMO

Murtha has directed hundreds of millions of dollars in government contracts over the years to Coherent and other defense contractors. He is not implicated in Ianieri's case and has previously declined to comment. His spokesman also declined to comment Tuesday on lanieri's plea.

[flareon]

Murtha is a Democrat. He might have helped them get the contract, but isn't named in the case, but then I would guess that depends on who is doing the investigating. I wonder if he will ever make a comment on this. When they clam up rather than immediately condemn such actions, it always makes me wonder why.
IMO

It does make you wonder. This isn't the first time Murtha has been on the edge of one of these investigations. It probably wouldn't serve him well to say anything until he is sure he isn't in the cross hairs.

[Hey Paula]

Murtha is a Democrat. He might have helped them get the contract, but isn't named in the case, but then I would guess that depends on who is doing the investigating. I wonder if he will ever make a comment on this. When they clam up rather than immediately condemn such actions, it always makes me wonder why.
IMO

No wonder Murtha clammed up! (But I agree with you that it depends on who is doing the investigating.)

From the same link:

Ianieri's attorney, W. Thomas Dillard, of Knoxville, Tenn., declined to comment after the hearing. He would not address questions regarding whether Murtha had sponsored the $8.2 million earmark, or if his client could implicate Murtha or another member of Congress in allegedly illegal conduct.

[Brat2002]

No wonder Murtha clammed up! (But I agree with you that it depends on who is doing the investigating.)

From the same link:

Ianieri's attorney, W. Thomas Dillard, of Knoxville, Tenn., declined to comment after the hearing. He would not address questions regarding whether Murtha had sponsored the $8.2 million earmark, or if his client could implicate Murtha or another member of Congress in allegedly illegal conduct.

Oh, the suspense is killing me! Wonder when they will address the questions.

[Hey Paula]

Oh, the suspense is killing me! Wonder when they will address the questions.

I don't hold much hope, if it goes the way of John Conyers' "investigation" of ACORN, which I predicted would never materialize. This administration, and its controlling Congress, is insulting the intelligence of the American people, as well as ignoring and disregarding their will. They believe we can be appeased indefinitely by merely feigning transparency without actually practicing it.

Congress is being led by lawbreakers, and those who were primarily responsible for the current state of our economy. It defies logic that they would/could retain the same key positions where they can continue their destructive course. Barney Frank wants to repeat the same toxic pattern of loose lending for condos after Fannie & Freddie recently tightened them.

IMO

[flareon]

Oh, the suspense is killing me! Wonder when they will address the questions.

Don't hold your breath. We would hate to lose you. :smile:

[watcher2005]

"Lebanese man is target of first rendition under Obama"

By Bob Drogin

August 22, 2009


Copyright © 2009, The Los Angeles Times


http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/afghanistan/la-na-rendition22-2009aug22,0,2566307.story



The alleged crime.... bribery.


Another version:


"Extraordinary rendition for … white-collar criminals?"

By Daniel Tencer

(c) Raw Story August 22, 2009

http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/08/22/extraordinary-rendition-white-collar/


Let the spin begin. 1,2,3 Go!

[IaNsSyAlNuE]

In court papers, Azar said he was denied his eyeglasses, not given food for 30 hours and put in a freezing room after his arrest by "more than 10 men wearing flak jackets and carrying military style assault rifles."

Azar also said he was shackled and forced to wear a blindfold, dark hood and earphones for up to 18 hours on a Gulfstream V jet that flew him from Bagram air base, outside Kabul, to Virginia.

Before the hood was put on, he said, one of his captors waved a photo of Azar's wife and four children and warned Azar that he would "never see them again" unless he confessed.


This sound so familiar...humm where have I heard it before...

*tapping* *tapping my fingers* darn memory I hate the aging process..

SNAP I remember!

Sounds just like some of the horrible abuse those under Bush were accused of.

[rubberneckin]

"Lebanese man is target of first rendition under Obama"

By Bob Drogin

August 22, 2009


Copyright © 2009, The Los Angeles Times


http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/afghanistan/la-na-rendition22-2009aug22,0,2566307.story



The alleged crime.... bribery.


Another version:


"Extraordinary rendition for … white-collar criminals?"

By Daniel Tencer

(c) Raw Story August 22, 2009

http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/08/22/extraordinary-rendition-white-collar/


Let the spin begin. 1,2,3 Go!

My guess is that you won't get too many responses on this thread from Obama fans. When it's too hard to spin, they seem to just ignore it.

I really can't understand how the Obama hold-ons can't see how similar he is to Bush.

[flareon]

My guess is that you won't get too many responses on this thread from Obama fans. When it's too hard to spin, they seem to just ignore it.

I really can't understand how the Obama hold-ons can't see how similar he is to Bush.

It is just another example of situational ethics, values and morals. It really does come down to the letter behind the name for some. No surprise there.

[rubberneckin]

It is definitely a puzzler, isn't it? The BO hardcore supporters were ready to say McCain was another Bush when in fact BO was just as much of more of the same as McCain would have been. The letter behind one's name doesn't make their behavior change but it sure is an incentive for some to cling to.

Indeed. My father is a member of a "letter club." I often wonder why he defends his chosen letter so passionately. Just who is he helping by defending a side? Imo, he misses the ball entirely by ignoring, excusing, or rationalizing things that are most indefensible; all for the sake of saving face for his chosen letter. That doesn't sound very helpful for him, now does it?

The problem, though, is that there are still too many people out there with the same twisted, manipulated logic. Until more come to realize that the letter is a farce--a game--a way to occupy and separate, the more we all lose. JMO.

[watcher2005]

I think this said everything that needs saying back in February:


"Obama Backs Off a Reversal on Secrets"

(c) February 10, 2009 NYT



"Judge Schroeder asked, “The change in administration has no bearing?”

Once more, he said, “No, Your Honor.”


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/us/10torture.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper

[Hannibal]

which I do not btw..
Just another right wing plant...

I never said McCain was another Bush...

Bush was foolish and stupid in some of the things he did or allowed to have happen under his watch.
He lied about Iraq..that is obvious even to most republicans...

Of course since he became Prez Obama has made a lot of mistakes and his pol numbers have dropped as a result...
Lies told by repubs about him have contributed to that as well...

If the economy turns around Obama's numbers will rise.If Mc Cain had won the Presidency his poll numbers would alos have declined...

Mc Cain was never another Bush and Obama isn't either...

:thumbdown: