U.S. Navy Capt. Daniel Dusek was sentenced to almost four years in prison for steering military business toward a foreign defense contractor in exchange for hookers, luxury travel and booze.
Advertisement
Contractor Leonard Francis, the man at the center of the case, also pleaded guilty a year ago, admitting that his company supplied Dusek and other officers with meals, alcohol, luxury hotel stays, prostitutes, and other gifts to ensure US Navy ships stopped at ports where GDMA operated.
Before being sentenced, Dusek told the judge, “I will hold this guilt in my heart for the rest of my life”, according to the Associated Press.
Ten individuals have been charged in connection to case, nine of whom have pleaded guilty, including Lt. Cmdr. In all, investigators estimate Francis masterminded a $34.8 million over-billing scheme separate from the bribery scheme, in which he overcharged ships for port visits and falsified port tariffs and competitors’ bids.
The Seventh Fleet oversees all U.S. Navy operations in Asia.
The latter allegation was substantiated by emails suggesting that Dusek had convinced senior officers to bring the Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group to call at Port Klang, Malaysia, where husbanding services – provisioning and ships’ agency – would be provided by GDMA.
Ten other people, including Naval commanders, have been charged so far for their involvement in the corruption scandal.
‘It’s truly unimaginable to the court that someone in your position with the United States Navy would sell out based on what was provided to you – hotel rooms, entertainment and the services of prostitutes, ‘ US District Judge Janis Sammartino said during the sentencing in San Diego, California.
In his statement, Dusek said a “senior officer who was a friend and a mentor” introduced him in 2010 to Leonard Glenn Francis, the owner of Glenn Defense Marine Asia and a charismatic figure known in Navy circles as “Fat Leonard”.
Dusek became the first suspect in the bribery scandal to self-report his crime after Francis was arrested in 2013.
On July 13 2010, Cpt Dusek gave Francis’s company classified files showing the scheduled movements of USA ships.
GDMA ended up charging the Navy $1.6 million for that stop, a significant amount of that cost being fraudulently billed, said Assistant US Attorney Mark Pletcher.
“I will never forgive myself for my dealings with Glenn Defense Marine”, Dusek said.
Advertisement
“Captain Dusek’s betrayal is the most distressing because the Navy placed so much trust, power and authority in his hands”, she said. A few weeks later the company got him a hotel room at the Shangri-La in Makati, Philippines, and provided him with the services of a prostitute, according to the plea agreement.
