Three convicted of bribery, fraud in Albany Marine base trucking contracts | VIDEO

WASHINGTON – Two former civilian employees at Marine Corps Logistics Base-Albany and one military contractor were convicted by a federal jury Tuesday of bribery and fraud charges related to military trucking contracts, Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore of the Middle District of Georgia announced this morning.

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Christopher Whitman, 48, co-owner of United Logistics, an Albany-based trucking company and freight transportation broker, was convicted of 43 counts of honest services wire fraud, five counts of bribery, five counts of obstructing justice and one count of theft of government property, accoridng to a release from the Justice Department.

Shawn McCarty, 36, of Albany, a former employee at the MCLB-Albany, was convicted of 15 counts of honest services wire fraud, one count of bribery and one count of obstructing justice. Bradford Newell, 43, of Sylvester, also a former employee at the MCLB-Albany, was convicted of 13 counts of honest services wire fraud, one count of bribery and one count of theft of government property, the DOJ said.

“We are extremely grateful for the efforts of everyone involved with the investigation and prosecution of this case,” Col. Don Davis, commanding officer, Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany, said this morning. “Our Marines and base personnel take their jobs in support of warfighters around the globe very seriously. We pride ourselves in being good stewards of the tax payer dollar; and as such, whenever fraud, waste and abuse are identified we need to address it immediately.

“This case serves as a reminder of that commitment; and those who participate in illegal activities will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law. We will continue to focus on our main mission of supporting and enabling Marines to be most ready when the nation is least ready, and to deploy to any clime or place.”

Justice officials say that, according to evidence presented at trial, Whitman paid more than $800,000 in bribes to three former officials of the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) at the MCLB-Albany, including the head of the DLA Traffic Office and McCarty, to obtain commercial trucking business from the base. The transportation contracts were loaded with unnecessary premium-priced requirements, including expedited service, expensive trailers and exclusive use, which requires that freight be shipped separately from other equipment, even if that results in a truck not being filled to capacity. As a result of these contracts, Whitman’s company grossed more than $37 million over less than four years, DOJ said.

Justice officials said the evidence further demonstrated that Whitman paid approximately $200,000 in bribes to the former inventory control manager of the Distribution Management Center at MCLB-Albany, Newell and others, who used their official positions to help Whitman steal more than $1 million in surplus equipment from the base, including bulldozers, cranes and front-end loaders. In exchange for the bribes, Newell and the inventory control manager removed the surplus items from Marine Corps inventory and arranged to have them transported off the base by Whitman’s company. Whitman then arranged to improve and paint the stolen equipment, and sell it to private purchasers.

One former United Logistics employee, a business partner of Whitman’s, two former DLA officials and another MCLB official previously pleaded guilty for their roles in the fraud and corruption scheme.

The case was investigated by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, with assistance from the Dougherty County District Attorney’s Office Economic Crime Unit, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, DLA Office of the Inspector General, and the Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Deputy Chief J.P. Cooney and Trial Attorney Richard B. Evans of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney K. Alan Dasher of the Middle District of Georgia. The associated forfeiture litigation is being handled by Assistant Deputy Chief Darrin McCullough of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section and the Middle District of Georgia.