Fat Leonard

Two retired U.S. Navy chief petty officers and one retired captain were charged with bribery and fraud in the multi-year “Fat Leonard” criminal investigation, which has been described as the worst corruption scandal in Navy history.

Leonard Glenn Francis, who at 6’3″ tall and weighing 350 pounds is known as “Fat Leonard,” is the owner of Glenn Defense Marine Asia, a logistics and support firm. He pleaded guilty to bribery and corruption charges related to his dealings with the US Navy in 2015 and has been cooperating with investigators ever since.

So far, Justice Department has filed criminal charges against 32 defendants who worked for the Navy or Glenn Defense Marine Asia. Twenty of the defendants have pleaded guilty in the scandal that cost the Navy at least $35 million over two decades. Another 550 people who had contact with Francis — including about 60 admirals — are under investigation.

The three most recently charged are retired Navy Captain David Williams Haas, retired Master Chief Petty Officer Ricarte Icmat David, and retired Chief Petty Officer Brooks Alonzo Parks. Each faces up to 20 years in prison for accepting gifts ranging from cash, fancy meals, to hotel-suite parties with prostitutes, in exchange for approving inflated invoices and for steering Navy contracts to Glenn Defense Marine. They also face fines that could reach $250,000.

In addition to the recent criminal charges, in June SECNAV also censured three Navy officers, two retired and one on active duty, for their roles in the scandal.