Ex-US Navy attache gets 41 months’ jail for bribery

SAN DIEGO: A former US Naval attache to the US embassy in the Philippines has been sentenced to 41 months in prison for illicitly securing diplomatic clearances for a Malaysian defence contractor in exchange for luxury watches and the services of prostitutes.

Retired Navy Capt Michael Brooks was sentenced on Friday in a federal court in San Diego after pleading guilty to bribery charges last year in the Navy’s worst corruption scandal, which helped line the pockets of Singapore-based businessman Leonard Francis, nicknamed “Fat Leonard”.

US District Judge Janis L. Sammar- tino ordered Brooks, 59, to pay a US$40,000 (RM170,960) fine as well as US$31,000 (RM132,490) in restitution to the US Navy.

Brooks is one of 21 current and former Navy officials charged in the corruption case involving Francis, the chief executive officer of Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA), whose company serviced Navy ships in Asia for 25 years and overbilled the maritime branch by nearly US$35mil (RM150mil).

“I continue to be appalled by the sheer number of officers who were corrupted, and by how easy it was to lure them into the scheme,” acting US Attorney Alana W. Robinson said in a statement.

According to the plea agreement, Brooks, who served as the US naval attache in Manila from 2006 to 2008, secured quarterly diplomatic clearances under the US embassy for the vessels of Francis’ company to travel in and out of the Philippines without being subjected to inspections.

Neither GDMA nor any other defence contractor had ever been granted such clearances. It also limited the amount of taxes and customs fees the company had to pay.

Brooks submitted a Navy performance evaluation in 2007 that was ghostwritten by GDMA, and provided the company Navy ship sched- ules as well as billing information of competitors.

Brooks also gave Francis internal Navy information, including ship schedules and billing information belonging to a GDMA competitor, and sometimes used private e-mail accounts to hide their dealings, according to court documents.

In return, Francis gave Brooks and his family fine wines, luxury watches and other gifts totalling more than US$15,000 (RM64,000), prosecutors said.

Francis has also pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.

Brooks retired from the Navy in 2011. — AP