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Navy corruption scandal mastermind

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A navy contractor who served because the architect behind the “Fats Leonard” Navy scandal has been captured in Venezuela after he went on the lam earlier this month, the U.S. Marshals Service confirmed to CBS Information Wednesday evening.

Leonard Francis, who goes by the nickname “Fats Leonard,” was detained on an Interpol pink discover at Simon Bolivar Worldwide Airport in Caracas whereas boarding a flight to Cuba, the U.S. Marshals Service informed CBS Information.

Leonard had been beneath home arrest in San Diego, and was days away from being sentenced, when he minimize off his ankle bracelet in early September and fled.

U.S. Marshals had believed Leonard had fled south into Mexico after chopping off his monitoring bracelet.

Francis was first arrested in San Diego in 2013 and pleaded responsible in 2015 to providing $500,000 in bribes to Navy officers. In change, the officers handed him categorised info and even went as far as redirecting navy vessels to ports that have been profitable for his Singapore-based ship servicing firm. Francis, in response to prosecutors, overcharged the U.S. navy by $35 million for his firm’s providers.

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In accordance to his 2015 plea settlement, Francis recognized seven Navy officers who had accepted bribes and acknowledged paying off officers with tons of of hundreds in money, in addition to luxurious items value thousands and thousands. He provided them with prostitutes and Cuban cigars, luxurious journey, Spanish suckling pigs and Kobe beef. Officers obtained spa remedies, top-shelf alcohol, designer purses, leather-based items, designer furnishings, watches, fountain pens, decorative swords and handmade ship fashions, in response to courtroom paperwork.

Over 30 Navy officers and contractors have both been convicted or pleaded responsible to costs associated to Francis’ providers.

At occasions weighing in at greater than 400 kilos, Francis was colloquially referred to as “Fats Leonard.”

Francis was beneath home arrest since at the very least 2018 and beneath the supervision of a federal company, Pre-Trial Providers, that screens defendants who’re out of custody till sentencing. Previous to his disappearance, he had been scheduled to be sentenced on the finish of September, and confronted as much as 25 years behind bars.   

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