Posted on Sep 11, 2022
Whiskey, Kobe beef and suckling pig: inside the ‘Fat Leonard’ navy bribery scandal
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Leonard Glenn Francis, known as “Fat Leonard”, skipped house arrest on Monday and has, in all probability, crossed the US-Mexico border and is trying to make his way to Asia.
Francis, who was due to be sentenced after pleading guilty to a decades-long military contractor fraud scheme, has left behind a headache for the US navy, and for the military broadly, in mounting foreign operations.
At 350 pounds, Francis merited the name “Fat Leonard”. But he was also known in navy circles as “Leonard the Legend”, and as the man who seduced the 7th Fleet by systematically greasing the wheels with corrupt bonhomie.
Francis, who was due to be sentenced after pleading guilty to a decades-long military contractor fraud scheme, has left behind a headache for the US navy, and for the military broadly, in mounting foreign operations.
At 350 pounds, Francis merited the name “Fat Leonard”. But he was also known in navy circles as “Leonard the Legend”, and as the man who seduced the 7th Fleet by systematically greasing the wheels with corrupt bonhomie.
Whiskey, Kobe beef and suckling pig: inside the ‘Fat Leonard’ navy bribery scandal
Posted from theguardian.com
Corruption
Scandal
Singapore
7th Fleet
Mexico
Posted >1 y ago
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."But with Fat Leonard now on the lam, the lessons of the scandal may have yet to be learned, and that corruption may just be built into larger objectives and the projection of US strategic power.
“For us to get a ship to a port, Leonard did our dirty work. That’s the best way, and most blunt way that you could describe that happening,” Misiewicz told Defense News of the fixer’s central importance.
“Whether it’s through the NCIS, or the embassy, with the host nation police, with the host nation government, the guy was connected and had every in and out on making things happen,” he added. “And as morally upright as we are as Americans, the fact of the matter is some things over there in Asia have to be done behind closed doors.”
..."But with Fat Leonard now on the lam, the lessons of the scandal may have yet to be learned, and that corruption may just be built into larger objectives and the projection of US strategic power.
“For us to get a ship to a port, Leonard did our dirty work. That’s the best way, and most blunt way that you could describe that happening,” Misiewicz told Defense News of the fixer’s central importance.
“Whether it’s through the NCIS, or the embassy, with the host nation police, with the host nation government, the guy was connected and had every in and out on making things happen,” he added. “And as morally upright as we are as Americans, the fact of the matter is some things over there in Asia have to be done behind closed doors.”
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