Tag Archives: National Guard Bureau

Army National Guard Official Pleads Guilty for Accepting $30,000 Bribe

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An Army National Guard official pleaded guilty today for accepting a $30,000 bribe in exchange for steering a $3.6 million contract to a retired sergeant major of the Minnesota Army National Guard and his consulting company.  Today’s guilty plea is the eighth in connection with an investigation into corruption within the National Guard Bureau related to the awarding of millions of dollars of Army National Guard marketing, retention and recruitment contracts.

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Dana J. Boente of the Eastern District of Virginia, U.S. Attorney Loretta E. Lynch of the Eastern District of New York, Assistant Director in Charge Andrew McCabe of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Robert E. Craig Jr. of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Mid-Atlantic Field Office and Director Frank Robey of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigative Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit (Army-CID) made the announcement.

Jason Rappoccio, 39, of Hampton, South Carolina, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady of the Eastern District of Virginia to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery and one count of bribery.  Rappoccio was indicted on Sept. 25, 2014, and will be sentenced on May 22, 2015.

According to plea documents, Rappoccio, who was an active duty sergeant first class in the Army National Guard, admitted to accepting a $30,000 bribe from Timothy Bebus, a retired sergeant major of the Minnesota Army National Guard and owner of Mil-Team Consulting and Solutions LLC (Mil-Team).  In exchange, Rappoccio agreed to recommend the award of a $3.6 million contract to Mil-Team and to steer the contract to a Small Business Administration (SBA) 8(a) certified company, chosen by Bebus, that would sub-contract the work to Mil-Team.

Rappoccio admitted that he received the $30,000 bribe in installments to conceal the payment.  Bebus gave $6,000 in cash directly to Rappoccio at a meeting in Arlington, Virginia.  The remaining $24,000 was paid in a cashier’s check in the name of Rappoccio’s wife.

Rappoccio also admitted that days after receiving the $30,000 bribe, he solicited and received airline tickets for two of his family members from Bebus.  Three months later, Rappoccio also received NFL tickets worth $1,328 from another co-conspirator.  At the time that he accepted these additional benefits, Rappoccio agreed to steer an additional $4 million contract to Bebus and his company.

The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, with assistance from DCIS’s Mid-Atlantic Field Office and Army-CID’s Expeditionary Fraud Resident Agency’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit.  The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Alison L. Anderson of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Fahey of the Eastern District of Virginia and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Marisa Seifan and Martin Coffey of the Eastern District of New York.

Former Army National Guard Soldier Pleads Guilty in Connection with Bribery and Fraud Scheme to Defraud the U.S. Army National Guard Bureau

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A former soldier of the U.S. Army National Guard has pleaded guilty for his role in a bribery and fraud scheme that caused approximately $70,000 in losses to the U.S. Army National Guard Bureau, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.
Former Sergeant First Class Michael Rambaran, 51, of Pearland, Texas, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy, one count of bribery and one count of aggravated identity theft.   Sentencing is scheduled for June 24, 2014 before U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal in Houston.
The case arises from an investigation involving allegations that former and current military recruiters and U.S. soldiers in the San Antonio and Houston areas engaged in a wide-ranging corruption scheme to illegally obtain fraudulent recruiting bonuses.   To date, the investigation has led to charges against 25 individuals, 22 of whom have pleaded guilty.
According to court documents, in approximately September 2005, the National Guard Bureau entered into a contract with Document and Packaging Broker Inc. (Docupak) to administer the Guard Recruiting Assistance Program (G-RAP).   The G-RAP was a recruiting program that offered monetary incentives to Army National Guard soldiers who referred others to join the Army National Guard.   Through this program, a participating soldier could receive bonus payments for referring another individual to join the Army National Guard.   Based on certain milestones achieved by the referred soldier, a participating soldier would receive payment through direct deposit into the participating soldier’s designated bank account.   To participate in the program, soldiers were required to create online recruiting assistant accounts.
Rambaran admitted that between approximately February 2008 and August 2011, while he was a recruiter for the National Guard, he obtained the names and Social Security numbers of potential soldiers and provided them to recruiting assistants so that they could use the information to obtain fraudulent recruiting referral bonuses by falsely claiming that they were responsible for referring those potential soldiers to join the Army National Guard, when in fact they were not.   In exchange for the information, Rambaran admitted that he personally received a total of approximately $29,000 in payments from the recruiting assistants.
Co-conspirators  Edia Antoine, Ernest A. Millien III and Melanie Moraida pleaded guilty to conspiracy and bribery in connection to this scheme.   Antoine and Millien are each scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 24, 2014.   Moraida is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 26, 2014.   All of these sentencing hearings are set before U.S. District Judge Rosenthal in Houston.
Another alleged co-conspirator, Christopher Renfro, who was indicted on Aug. 7, 2013, remains charged with two counts of wire fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft.   Trial is currently scheduled for June 16, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Rosenthal in Houston.   An indictment is only an accusation, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The cases are being investigated by special agents from the San Antonio Fraud Resident Agency of Army CID’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit.   This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Sean F. Mulryne, Heidi Boutros Gesch and Mark J. Cipolletti of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney John Pearson of the Southern District of Texas.

Former Army National Guard Soldier Sentenced to 57 Months in Prison for Lead Role in Fraudulent Military Recruiting Referral Bonus Scheme

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A former member of the U.S. Army National Guard was sentenced today to serve 57 months in prison for leading a conspiracy to obtain approximately $244,000 in fraudulent recruiting referral bonuses from various U.S. military components and their contractor, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

Former U.S. Army National Guard Specialist Xavier Aves, 42, of San Antonio, was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Fred Biery in the Western District of Texas.  In addition to his prison term, Chief Judge Biery sentenced Aves to serve three years of supervised release and ordered Aves to pay $244,000 in restitution, jointly and severally with co-conspirators.

On Sept. 16, 2011, a grand jury in the Western District of Texas returned a 41-count indictment against Aves and five co-defendants, in which Aves was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, 30 counts of wire fraud and 10 counts of aggravated identity theft.

On Feb. 3, 2012, Aves pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.

The case against Aves and his co-defendants arose from an investigation concerning allegations that former and current soldiers and military and civilian contract recruiters in the San Antonio area engaged in a wide-ranging scheme to obtain fraudulent recruiting referral bonuses.  To date, 11 individuals have been charged, 10 of whom have pleaded guilty and been sentenced.  The investigation is ongoing.

According to court documents, between 2005 and 2008, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Army Reserves and the National Guard Bureau entered into contracts with Document and Packaging Broker Inc. to administer recruiting bonus programs designed to offer monetary incentives to soldiers who referred others to serve in the U.S. military.  In addition, the Army managed its own recruiting bonus programs, which offered referral bonuses to soldiers who referred other individuals to serve in the Army or Army Reserves after registering online as recruiting assistants (RA) or sponsors.

Through these recruiting programs, a participating soldier could receive up to $2,000 in bonus payments for every person he referred to join the U.S. military.  Based on certain milestones achieved by the referred soldier, a participating soldier would receive the recruiting bonus payments in the form of direct deposits and pre-paid debit card payments.

According to court documents, between February 2006 and February 2011, Xavier Aves, Christopher Castro, Grant Bibb, Paul Escobar, Richard Garcia, Ernest Gonzales and others paid military recruiters, including Jesus Torres-Alvarez, for the names and social security numbers of potential soldiers.  Aves, Castro, Bibb, Escobar, Garcia, Gonzales and others used the information they obtained from recruiters to claim credit in their online RA and sponsor accounts for referring certain new soldiers to join the military, when in fact they did not refer those individuals.

Aves orchestrated the scheme by serving as a key intermediary between the recruiters and the participating RAs.  Aves arranged for the money to be split among his co-conspirators and directed a portion of the proceeds to be wired to his and his girlfriend’s personal bank accounts.

As a result of the fraudulent referrals, Aves and his co-conspirators received a total of approximately $244,000 in fraudulent recruiting bonuses.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Edward J. Loya Jr., Brian A. Lichter, Mark J. Cipolletti and Sean F. Mulryne of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section.  The case is being investigated by agents from the San Antonio Fraud Resident Agency of the Major Procurement Fraud Unit, U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division.

Army National Guard Captain Charged for Alleged Role in Bribery and Wire Fraud Scheme and Two Former Soldiers Sentenced for Their Roles in a Related Scheme

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To Date, 11 Individuals Have Been Charged in Ongoing Corruption Investigation

A Texas Army National Guard captain has been charged for his alleged role in a bribery and wire fraud scheme and two former soldiers in the Texas Army National Guard were sentenced for their roles in a separate scheme to defraud the National Guard Bureau and its contractor, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

These cases arose from an investigation concerning allegations that former and current soldiers and military and civilian contract recruiters in the San Antonio and Houston areas engaged in a wide-ranging scheme to obtain fraudulent recruiting referral bonuses.  To date, 11 people have been charged in this ongoing investigation, including yesterday’s 17-count indictment of Fabian Barrera, 46, of Schertz, Texas, a Captain in the Army National Guard accused of personally obtaining more than $185,500 in fraudulent recruiting bonuses.  Barrera made his initial appearance on May 16, 2013, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jillyn K. Schulze.  The public is reminded that an indictment is merely a charge and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

According to court documents, in approximately September 2005, the National Guard Bureau entered into a contract with Document and Packaging Broker, Inc., to administer the Guard Recruiting Assistance Program (G-RAP), which was designed to offer monetary incentives to soldiers who referred others to join the U.S. military.  To participate in the G-RAP, an eligible soldier needed to establish an online recruiting assistant (RA) account.  Through these recruiting programs, a participating soldier could receive up to $3,000 in bonus payments for every person he or she referred to serve in the U.S. military.

Barrera, an RA in the G-RAP between approximately December 2005 and February 2012, is alleged to have paid Army National Guard recruiters for the names and Social Security numbers of potential soldiers and used this information to claim that he was responsible for referring dozens of potential soldiers to join the military, though he allegedly did not recruit any of those people.  As a result, Barrera is accused of receiving more than approximately $185,000 in fraudulent recruiting bonuses, and the indictment alleges that Barrera paid various recruiters in the form of checks and cash payments.

Former Staff Sergeant Jermaine Britt, 39, of Richmond, Texas, was sentenced today to 30 months in prison by Chief U.S. District Judge Biery for his role in obtaining $86,500 in fraudulent bonus payments. According to court documents, Britt served as a recruiter in the Houston area from approximately November 2006 until November 2012. He conspired with former Specialist Stephanie Heller, 37, of Wharton, Texas, who was an RA in the G-RAP and claimed approximately $44,500 in fraudulent bonuses through her account.  Heller made approximately $19,750 in bribe payments to Britt, who served as a recruiter in the Houston area from approximately November 2006 until November 2012. Heller also made a $1,000 bribe payment to another recruiter in exchange for Britt and that recruiter providing the personal information of potential soldiers.  In addition to accepting bribes from Heller, Britt worked with at least two other RAs to claim fraudulent bonus payments and accepted a total of $23,750 in bribe payments in exchange for providing the personal information of potential soldiers.

Britt also admitted that he obstructed justice by coaching Heller to make false statements to federal agents.  In September of 2012, Heller recorded two conversations with Britt.  In those conversations, Britt told Heller how she could provide false stories to federal agents to innocently explain incriminating conduct, such as large cash withdrawals from her bank account, her receipt of emails from Britt in which Britt provided the personal identifiers of potential soldiers, and her use of Britt’s military computer to make referrals under her RA account.

Britt pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery and wire fraud, bribery, and obstruction of justice on Nov. 9, 2012. Heller pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery and wire fraud and bribery on Oct. 4, 2012. Heller was also sentenced today to five years’ probation, and her cooperation was instrumental in the case against Britt.

These cases are being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Edward J. Loya Jr., Brian A. Lichter, and Sean F. Mulryne of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section.  These cases are being investigated by agents from the San Antonio Fraud Resident Agency of the Major Procurement Fraud Unit, U.S. Army CID, and from the San Antonio Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.