Former U.S. Navy Admiral & 2 Business Executives Arrested For Bribery

A retired Navy admiral and two corporate executives were detained on criminal accusations related to a bribery scheme involving a US government contract.

The scheme allegedly occurred between 2020 and 2022 and involved Robert Burke, 62, a retired four-star admiral from Coconut Creek, Florida, and Yongchul “Charlie” Kim and Meghan Messenger, co-CEOs of Company A, based in New York.

The indictment claims that Burke, who commanded Naval activities in Europe, Russia, and most of Africa, exploited his position to funnel a contract to Company A in exchange for future employment.

Despite the Navy’s directive to stop contacting Burke after a previous contract ended in 2019, Kim and Messenger met with him in July 2021 in Washington, D.C.

They allegedly conspired to gain a sole-source contract for Company A and to persuade other Navy commanders to award another lucrative contract, which Kim estimates to be worth “triple-digit millions.”

Burke allegedly directed the issuance of a $355,000 contract to Company A for personnel training in Italy and Spain, completed in January 2022.

Following this, Burke promoted Company A within the Navy but could not get any new contracts.

To conceal it, Burke allegedly lied to the Navy about his role in the fraudulent scheme and the timeframe of his employment conversations with Company A.

Burke began working for Company A in October 2022, with a beginning salary of $500,000 and 100,000 stock options.

Burke, Kim, and Messenger have been charged with conspiracy to commit bribery.

Burke is also accused of engaging in conduct that harms his financial interests and conceals material facts from the United States.

If convicted, Burke could face up to 30 years in jail, while Kim and Messenger may each face up to 20 years.

The DCIS, NCIS, and FBI are all investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys Trevor Wilmot and Kathryn E. Fifield of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Rothstein for the District of Columbia are handling the prosecution.

The statement was made by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves for the District of Columbia, and DCIS, NCIS, and FBI officials.

Reference: Justice.Gov

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Source: Maritime Shipping News