Final week, a former senior Navy official chargeable for logistics and transportation operations was convicted on fees of bribery and mendacity to investigators, in response to the Division of Justice.
Xavier Fernando Monroy, 64, the previous director of operations for the Navy’s Army Sealift Command in South Korea, was accused of soliciting and accepting bribes to direct Navy contracts to a non-public logistics firm in alternate for cash, meals, alcohol, and “the providers of prostitutes,” in response to a Friday Justice Division press launch.
In 2013, Monroy; James Driver, a civilian captain of a Navy cargo ship known as the USNS Charles Drew; and Sung Yol “David” Kim, proprietor of DK Marine, allegedly “conspired to avoid U.S. Navy procedures to steer enterprise to DK Marine in reference to the Drew’s late December 2013 port go to in Chinhae, [Republic of Korea],” in response to Monroy’s legal grievance.
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Court docket filings stated that Monroy and Kim have been involved as early as 2011. The case was investigated by the Protection and Naval Felony Investigative Companies.
The bribery allegations hinge on a number of situations of Monroy forwarding inner Navy emails about port go to schedules, contract logistics and, in a single occasion, a dredging undertaking to Kim. It’s unclear whether or not these communications have been labeled, although the prosecution asserted that the emails have been “confidential” and that, as a Navy official, Monroy was not permitted to ship them to Kim.
Kim, a South Korean citizen, instructed investigators that he gave Monroy greater than $30,000 in “loans.” Peter Brill, Monroy’s legal professional, pushed again on the prosecution’s proof, stating that a lot of it was based on plea deal cooperation from Kim and Driver, contending that the mortgage quantity was solely $4,000, which Monroy paid again inside 4 days.
“They haven’t any proof of that aside from Mr. Kim’s phrases,” Brill instructed Army.com over the cellphone. “There is no documentation of it; the closest they might get was taking a look at all of his checking account exercise and saying we won’t determine the place sure cash got here from, so subsequently it should be unlawful.
“That is type of ridiculous if you concentrate on it,” he added.
Kim and Monroy’s skilled relationship shortly turned private, in response to court docket paperwork. Outdoors of properly needs over private e-mail and holidays to Thailand — which particular brokers allege that Kim paid for — “on not less than ten events through the course of the conspiracy, Kim and Monroy went collectively to ‘room salons,’ the place the providers of prostitutes may very well be employed,” in response to his legal grievance.
Brill confirmed that Monroy, Kim and Kim’s spouse traveled collectively “on a couple of events” to the Philippines and Thailand, however instructed Army.com that Monroy denies Kim paid for any of it. Monroy additionally denied soliciting intercourse staff, in response to the lawyer.
“There is a distinction between going out for drinks along with your colleague,” Brill stated, “and having your colleague spend cash on nights out and meals and prostitutes and so on., which is de facto rather more akin to the Fats Leonard [scandal].”
The Navy has been concerned in quite a few contracting fraud and bribery scandals lately. Most notably, as Brill talked about, the “Fats Leonard” scandal was a multi-year saga through which authorities accused Leonard Glenn “Fats Leonard” Francis, chief government officer of Glenn Protection Marine Asia, of bribing Navy officers with cash, intercourse employee providers and luxurious gadgets in alternate for labeled materials and contracting data.
Army.com additionally reported on an analogous scandal final yr through which a contractor allegedly defrauded the Navy of about $50 million in Bahrain.
Driver’s involvement appeared to floor in 2013, in response to court docket paperwork, when Monroy “repeatedly offered instructions by way of phone to Kim, which Kim conveyed to Driver by way of e-mail” on how the ship captain might circumvent Navy procedures to get the usCharles Drew serviced by DK Marine.
The Drew was imagined to be serviced by one other firm, recognized as “Firm 1” in court docket paperwork, which had already been awarded a Navy husbanding contract for South Korea earlier that yr.
“On or about December 21, 2013, Monroy, Kim, and a consultant of Firm 1 met the Drew when it arrived in port at Chinhae, ROK,” the legal grievance stated. “Over objections of the Firm 1 consultant, Driver selected to have Kim and DK Marine present husbanding providers for the Drew’s go to, wth Monroy’s acquiescence.”
Brill instructed Army.com that Monroy is a Marine Corps veteran with greater than 25 years of service, retiring as a grasp sergeant in 2000. Neither the Navy nor Marines might affirm Monroy’s navy service, although that doesn’t imply he didn’t serve, as data of older veterans are usually saved within the Nationwide Personnel Information Heart in St. Louis, Missouri, making particulars of their service more durable to shortly get hold of.
Monroy was additionally discovered responsible on Friday of mendacity to investigators throughout a 2019 interview.
Prosecutors alleged that Monroy made false statements by denying having a private relationship with Kim, receiving compensation from Kim, or driving Navy enterprise to his firm.
Brill questioned what was stated in these interviews and instructed {that a} stroke Monroy suffered in 2016 could have contributed to reminiscence loss points, although he didn’t handle particular false statements.
“One factor that I might wish to get throughout is the truth that three of his previous commanding officers or government officers stated issues about him that you’d rarely hear about one other particular person,” Brill instructed Army.com of Monroy’s former navy colleagues who have been allowed to testify in entrance of the jury. “Simply the extent of honesty, integrity and dedication to his job and to the navy have been actually unsurpassed.”
Brill stated that it’s unclear whether or not Monroy will enchantment and added that his shopper is out on bail, dwelling together with his household in New York whereas awaiting sentencing in November.
“We’ll deal with attempting to make the perfect sentencing arguments we will, given his lengthy service to this nation,” Brill instructed Army.com, “and hopefully the choose will acknowledge that sentence appropriately.”
Driver, the Drew’s captain, was indicted in 2018 for conspiracy and pleaded responsible the next yr. He was sentenced to pay a $2,000 nice, in response to court docket data. Driver is a Navy veteran and graduate of the U.S. Service provider Marine Academy, in response to his sentencing memorandum.
Kim, who cooperated with investigators, was indicted for conspiracy and bribery. He pleaded responsible to conspiracy in 2020, in response to Monroy’s legal grievance. His sentencing was rescheduled for subsequent month.
Monroy faces a most sentence of 35 years in jail.
— Drew F. Lawrence might be reached at drew.lawrence@navy.com. Observe him on Twitter @df_lawrence.
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