Peter Dunn, age 43, of Fort Lauderdale, FL pled guilty today in Norfolk federal court to conspiring to defraud the United States in conjunction with the award of government contracts in Iraq.
Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, made the announcement after United States District Judge Jerome B. Friedman accepted Dunn’s plea. Dunn will be sentenced on February 22, 2011, and faces up to a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
According to court documents, in 2007 Dunn and a co-defendant formed a new business, Global Procurement, Inc., for the purpose of obtaining government contracts in Iraq. Having previously tried and failed to obtain such contracts, during July and August 2007 Dunn and his partner became closely involved with several U.S. service members stationed at Camp Taji, Iraq, with input into the contracting process. These military personnel fraudulently agreed to assist Global Procurement to obtain government contracts in exchange for payments and gifts from Dunn and others.
As part of this conspiracy, one of the service members disclosed confidential competitor bid and pricing information to persons affiliated with Global Procurement, who used the data to prepare Global Procurement’s bid for a contract to supply and install equipment needed to establish a dining facility for Iraqi military and police forces. This service member also recommended to the contracting officer that this job be awarded to Global Procurement. After receiving and performing this contract, Global Procurement received $299,405 from the United States in payment for the work. Thereafter, Dunn and his business partner provided payments and gifts worth approximately $50,000 to one of the service members who had fraudulently helped Global Procurement obtain the job.
This case was investigated by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Office of Inspector General, and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Assistant United States Attorney Robert Krask is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
— SynaVista News – 9 November 2010 – http://www.news.synavista.com/florida-man-guilty-of-conspiring-to-obtain-government-contracts-in-iraq/10680
