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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings, Torture and Big Money |
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February 19th,
2008 - 12 Years for Contractor in Bribery Case |
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12 Years for Contractor
in Bribery Case By Elliot Spagat Associated Press February 19, 2008 San Diego - A defense
contractor was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison Tuesday for bribing
former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham with cash, trips, the services
of prostitutes and other gifts in exchange for nearly $90 million in Pentagon
work. Brent Wilkes was labeled
"a predatory wolf (in) self-styled patriot's clothing" and a
"poster boy for war profiteering" by prosecutor Phillip Halpern.
U.S. District Judge Larry Burns said he was troubled that Wilkes continued to
maintain his innocence. "If you were to do the
right thing about this, today is the day to own up," Burns told Wilkes
at the sentencing hearing. "You have no sense of
contrition," the judge added. "You had this corrupt relationship
with the congressman and you profited from it." Wilkes, 53, was convicted in
November on 13 counts of bribery, conspiracy and wire fraud. Prosecutors argued during a
three-week trial that Wilkes lavished Cunningham with more than $700,000 in
perks, including cash, submachine gun shooting lessons and the services of
prostitutes. In return, they said, Cunningham helped Wilkes secure $87
million in Pentagon contracts, mainly for scanning paper documents. Wilkes' attorney asked for a
sentence less than the eight years and four months Cunningham received.
Prosecutors asked for a "significantly higher punishment," and
federal probation officials had recommended 60 years. Wilkes acknowledged no
wrongdoing in a brief statement in which he asked the judge to look beyond
his dealings with Cunningham. "I am a man who cares
deeply for this community, for my family, for my country," Wilkes said. Cunningham, an eight-term
Republican congressman and Vietnam War flying ace, pleaded guilty in 2005 to
accepting $2.4 million in bribes from Wilkes and others - including antiques,
boats, a used Rolls-Royce and cash to pay the mortgage on his mansion. Wilkes has insisted on his
innocence since he was charged almost exactly one year ago. In eight hours on
the witness stand, he testified that his transactions with Cunningham were
legitimate and flatly denied bribing him or any other lawmakers. He blamed wrongdoing on
others, particularly his former employee Mitchell Wade, who in 2006 admitted
giving Cunningham more than $1 million in kickbacks for about $150 million in
government contracts. Wade awaits sentencing. Neither side called on
Cunningham to testify. Authorities said Wilkes
bribed Cunningham to win work for ADCS Inc., a data and document storage
company he owned. "Wilkes coldly and
successfully exploited the simplemindedness of one of this country's war
heroes, now a tortured shadow of his former self," prosecutors wrote in
a pre-sentencing court filing last week. "Wilkes stands now revealed as
a war profiteer, a thug, a bully, a lecherous old man who preyed on his young
female staffers and hired prostitutes." Wilkes and a former top CIA
official, Kyle "Dusty" Foggo, were charged in a separate corruption
case last year that alleged Wilkes gave Foggo meals, trips and other perks.
Wilkes was also accused of promising Foggo, a childhood friend, a job upon
retirement. In that case, Wilkes and
Foggo have each pleaded not guilty to 30 counts of fraud, conspiracy and
money laundering. Federal prosecutors said
last week that they would drop charges against Wilkes in that case but
reserved the right to indict him on the same or similar charges. The
government also dropped objections to moving the case against Foggo, the
CIA's former No. 3 official, from San Diego to Virginia. © 2008 The Associated Press External link: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/nation/5553525.html |