WASHINGTON – A former government contractor employee was sentenced to 46 months in prison today for his role in a bribery scheme involving a federal program in Afghanistan and conspiracy to structure financial transactions to avoid currency transaction reporting requirements.
Alexandria, VA — Pax Mondial LLC, doing business as Mondial Risk Management Company (MRMC), agreed to pay the United States $44,000 to settle civil fraud claims that it illegally exported firearms accessories from the United States to Afghanistan in 2012. At the time, MRMC was providing security services to support work on the Kandahar Helmand Power Project, a United States Government reconstruction project funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that the government has filed suit under the False Claims Act against Derish M. Wolff and Salvatore J. Pepe, respectively the former CEO and CFO of Louis Berger Group Inc. (LBG), for conspiring to overbill the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and other government agencies for costs incurred performing reconstruction contracts in Afghanistan, Iraq, and other countries, the Justice Department announced today. LBG is based in East Orange, New Jersey.
The Justice Department announced today that Jacintoport International LLC (Jacintoport) and Seaboard Marine Ltd. (Seaboard Marine) have agreed to pay $1.075 million to settle a lawsuit alleging that the companies violated the False Claims Act in connection with a warehousing and logistics contract for the storage and redelivery of humanitarian food aid. Jacintoport is a cargo handling and stevedoring firm headquartered in Houston, Texas, and Seaboard Marine, an affiliate of Jacintoport, is an ocean transportation company headquartered in Miami, Florida.
Lilongwe, Malawi — This week, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Inspector General (OIG), the Malawi Anti-Corruption Bureau, and the Malawi Police Service took joint action to secure evidence of theft, diversion, and resale of U.S. Government-funded antimalarial commodities. The police action resulted from information provided through hotlines under the USAID OIG’s “Make a Difference” (MAD) Malaria campaign and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria OIG’s ‘I Speak Out Now!’ campaign.
Abuja, Nigeria—The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Inspector General (OIG) relaunched its “Make a Difference” (MAD) Malaria hotline to make it easier for Nigerians to report stolen and falsified antimalarial drugs. The hotline now has a new local telephone number, operates 24 hours a day, and uses English- speaking operators. The hotline continues to offer rewards between $100 and $10,000 for previously unknown, usable information about theft, counterfeiting, resale, or other abuses of U.S. Government-funded antimalarial commodities.
USAID Office of Inspector General Moves to Stop Theft of U.S.‐Funded Commodities
Conakry, Guinea—This week, an investigation by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Inspector General (OIG) led local authorities in Guinea to arrest 8 individuals for illegally selling drugs to fight malaria. The arrests came after weeks of joint investigative work by OIG and the Guinean National Gendarmerie to secure evidence of theft, diversion, and resale of U.S. Government-funded antimalarial commodities.
USAID Inspector General Investigating Subject’s Role in Fraud Scheme
Washington, D.C. — The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Inspector General (OIG) announced the arrest this week of Dr. Eugene Sickle, a South African citizen, for money laundering. OIG Special Agents apprehended Dr. Sickle in Washington, D.C. for offenses committed in relation to USAID-supported HIV/AIDS programs in South Africa.
Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Jonathan Schofield, Special Agent in Charge of the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Agency for International Development (“USAID-OIG”), announced today the settlement of a civil fraud lawsuit against AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF BEIRUT (“AUB”), a teaching- centered research university located in Beirut, Lebanon, that receives funding from USAID.
USAID Inspector General Investigation Leads to 5‐Year Ban
Washington, D.C.—The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Inspector General (OIG) announced the debarment of 12 companies and individuals over their participation in a fraud scheme affecting humanitarian aid in Syria. USAID officials made the decision in April barring Orhan Senkardes, the Senkardes Company, and certain related individuals and companies from future business with the U.S. Government for 5 years.
