More arrests in the minority defense contractor bribery scheme
Maj. John L. Cockerham
Iraq War Contractor Guilty
Ex-Sergeant Pleads to Multiple Counts in Bribery Case Involving U.S. Army Officers
By JOEL MILLMAN
A former U.S. Army sergeant became the latest person to plead guilty in a sprawling bribes-for-contracts scheme in Iraq in 2005 and 2006 that has ended the careers of five military officers.
Terry Hall, 44 years old, of Snellville, Ga., pleaded guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Birmingham, Ala., to multiple counts of bribery, conspiracy, money-laundering and wire fraud. He agreed to forfeit $15.7 million seized as evidence from offshore accounts, and faces up to 20 years in prison. Mr. Hall’s lawyer couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday.
Mr. Hall’s plea is another milestone in a case that began more than three years ago with the suicide of Army Maj. Gloria Davis in her quarters at Baghdad’s Camp Victory. The case has brought guilty pleas from three other majors and one lieutenant colonel, who were accused of conspiring to rig defense contracts worth tens of millions of dollars in Iraq and Kuwait.
In 2005 and 2006, Mr. Hall acted as the go-between connecting two contracting officers, Maj. John L. Cockerham and Maj. James Momon, and defense contractors willing to kick back cash payments in exchange for supply deals, according to the federal indictment. The deals included providing thousands of bottles of drinking water, erecting chain link fences and procuring office equipment for Camp Arifjan in Kuwait. The three men, like almost all the principals in the case, are African-Americans.
The two majors directed the scheme from U.S. Army bases in the Middle East and Texas, according to Army criminal investigators. Both Messrs. Cockerham and Momon have pleaded guilty to bribery and other charges. Maj. Cockerham was sentenced to 17½ years in prison; Maj. Momon is awaiting sentencing. Neither could be reached for comment Wednesday.
Mr. Hall, a retired Army sergeant, came to Kuwait in 2004 to work for a food-service contractor hired by the Defense Department. Prosecutors allege Messrs. Momon and Cockerham directed him to register a U.S. corporation named Omega Construction & Support Services to bid for defense contracts. Through Omega, which no longer exists, Mr. Hall came to control a number of contractors. Those contractors, combined, received more than $20 million in supply deals, court documents say.
Some of those contractors listed their place of business as Mr. Hall’s home address in suburban Atlanta. Another contractor, based in Alabama, employed a retired officer named Eddie Pressley, who had been Maj. Cockerham’s Kuwait barracks mate. Mr. Pressley is scheduled to stand trial on federal bribery and other charges April 5. He couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday.
Another contractor involved with Mr. Hall was located near the Fort Hood Army base in Killeen, Texas. Called Total Government Allegiance, it was run by Dorothy and Ralph Ellis, Army veterans. Before retiring, Mrs. Ellis worked in food service in bases in Iraq, where she met Mr. Hall, according to the couple.
Mr. Ellis was emphatic that “TGA was never Mr. Hall’s company.” He added that Mr. Hall “used our company for his activities, illegal activities.”
On March 17, 2007, Mr. Hall went to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York for a flight to Dubai. Working from information provided by a confidential informant, U.S. agents seized Mr. Hall’s laptop, flash drive and two video DVDs. The electronic devices yielded evidence of transactions the informant had described, including links to offshore bank accounts, federal investigators said.
As investigators were closing in on Mr. Hall, the scheme allegedly had spread to new players, other minority contractors launched by retired soldiers from which Maj. Cockerham hoped to harvest future bribes, according to people familiar with the probe.
One such contractor was Seraphim Transport, which received a bottled water-contract worth $17 million. Michael Hightower, a Tennessee resident, was a principal of Seraphim. “I signed the contract and Maj. Cockerham shook my hand and said, ‘Now, what are you going to do for me?’ ” Mr. Hightower recounted in an affidavit filed with a Federal Claims Court in 2007. Mr. Hightower added: “I thought it was a joke.”
Mr. Hightower said soon he received an email informing him his supply contract had been reduced to $3.5 million. Later, it was canceled.
Mr. Hightower said he was shocked at how brazen the contracting officers were. “I’m sure they thought, ‘Hey, our own kind ain’t going to turn us in,’” Mr. Hightower explained.
Instead, Mr. Hightower said he went to the authorities. (click HERE for the original article)
Other Related Posts From Ms Sparky
- Eurica Pressley receives 6 year sentence for role in Iraq war bribery scheme
- Charles O. Finch & Gary M. Canteen sentenced for bribery scheme at Bagram
- Long island defense contractor, Thanomsak Hongthong, sentenced to two years in prison for bribery
- Long Path to Courtroom for War Contractor Accused of Bribery
- Defense contractor employee (Dorothy Ellis) pleads guilty to bribery
Thursday, February 18th 2010 at 9:28 pm |
OK so what food service contractor did Mr. Hall work for was it KBR, and what food service contractor did Dorthy Ellis work for ??
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 4:17 am |
It looks like he had direct contracts with the DoD, here is a link to a copy of the indictment:
http://www.justice.gov/criminal/npftf/pr/press_releases/2007/nov/11-20-07thall-indictment.pdf
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 1:27 pm |
Mr. Hall was a DFAC Manager in Arifjan for KBR. Surprised? This is the same DFAC that had procurement fraud from the likes of:
Stephen Seamans (KBR)
Shabir Khan (Tamimi)
Jeff Mazon (KBR)
Anthony Tony Martin (KBR)
Do these name ring any bells people. This guy Hall communicated with Khan and his brother and with the KBR people.
Strange to see him plead guilty. The shock on my face is just unbelievable. (Sarcasm)
He did plead guilty to what he did after he left KBR.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 2:34 pm |
2 cents
Please provide your evidence that Mr. Hall worked for KBR at Camp Arifjan as the SIGIR investigation report does not mention that at all.
Also please provide your evidence that the other KBR personnel sited worked on contracts for that DFAC as they were not in procurement in Kuwait.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 3:42 pm |
I don’t know what to tell you about the SIGIR report. It’s common knowledge Hall worked at Camp Arifjan. Here’s a quote from an 2007 Army Times article http://www.armytimes.com/news/2007/11/ap_briberycharge_071121/ I’m sure 2 cents will be more than happy to educate you.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 4:09 pm |
Thank you for the information. I believe it is important to be able to verify information when allegations are being made.
Ms. Sparky has been very fair about presenting this case – however, it seems that a number of bloggers are attempting to implecate KBR in this particular case.
According to the SIGIR audit report as posted all of the principles in this case were involved in direct contracts with the ACA (that had nothing to do with KBR or LOGCAP or any other LOGCAP contractor in any way) or worked directly for the U.S. Government.
That is not to say that there may not be other cases that involve the company inquestion. But let’s not try to imply that there is only ONE company that has corrupt personnel or that if someone is corrupt it is because they were sometime somewhere influenced by that one company.
Persons and companies that intentionally defraud the Government or endanger people should be brought to justice – no matter who they are. Implying that there is only one source of corruption and wrong doing is like saying that every criminal in the world can be traced bact to one family. (Ok I know – no one needs to chime in about everyone being able to be traced bact to one family – you get the drift).
If the object is to bring to light the fraud and wrong doing – let’s go after all of them – not just try to blame one company for everything.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 4:56 pm |
I agree. One reason the vast majority of people being indicted on fraud charges right now are former KBR is because KBR was the only game in town for LOGCAP III. They employed probably 250,000 or more employees over the term of the contract. It stands to reason many would have started their LOGCAP III careers with KBR then ventured off on their own. I blame KBR for their lack of oversight and the DoD for theirs. But…KBR does not have the entire market cornered on fraud waste and abuse there are many others and blog about as many as we can find.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 4:02 pm |
Really I don’t give a shit about your SIGIR Report I worked with him at Camp Arifjan. Go ask someone you know about GU49-KU-SO00001 contract with Tamimi.
Funny that you say that Martin, Seamans, and Mazon did not work Procurement in Kuwait as each of them have plead guilty to fraud related crimanal activities from work in theatre. If you know anything about the situation or know someone that was there.
Go ask them.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 4:15 pm |
I agree that they plead guilty to fraud – except from what I have read Mazon is still trying to say that he did not take a kickback – uh it was a ‘loan’ to start a business. And his case has not yet been settled.
I also agree that they were in Theater – however, from what I read the contracts that they were involved with were in Iraq – not Kuwait.
By the way are you always such a hateful person. You must be a pleasure to work with.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 4:59 pm |
There’s no need for that. You originally started this accusatory exchange and the tone of your comment was neither pleasant or helpful.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 5:09 pm |
Hateful? No.
Contracts involved with Seamans
Both at Arifjan DFAC and a Cleaning contract.
Mazon – Fuel at the APOD in Kuwait.
Martin – Trucks with First Kuwaiti in Kuwait.
Go to http://www.pogo.org
There you can see each of these cases mentioned and where they happened.
Martin & Mazon both conducted change orders and change order documentation relating to the Tamimi Subcontract.
By the way there were others. I am sure thier time in the spotlight will come out.
To your remark about other contractors, Yes there are other contractors. But this employee worked for KBR before starting his own company for fraud. He worked with 4 known people convicted.
My Opinion: I am sure Mr. Hall did not turn corrupted the day he left KBR to start his business.
If you need to know what I say is Legit, ask Debbie. She can vouch for what I say. I will never turn over any documents that show these people’s names connected on them.
Have a good day.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 5:12 pm |
Yep you’re right. It’s all on POGO.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 5:21 pm |
Thank you the reference to where the information can be found. I would never ask anyone to provide information that was not already in the public domain.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 5:10 pm |
Professionalism, well if you are a professional instead of continued to add to the venting the conversations on this blog would not always go south. Some of the contributors cannot stand KBR yes there is there right but not all of KBR or related employees are not like the folks who were caught with there hands in the cookie jar. Hateful yes people get hateful when others offer a different opinion and not stick with the status quo. Don’t feed the hate and the hate eventually will either start to lurk or eventually go away.
Friday, February 19th 2010 at 5:14 pm |
Ksniper….I think you and I have even gone a round or two….or three. But you are fair and have shown you can run with the big dogs!!
Sunday, February 21st 2010 at 10:12 pm |
Ms Sparky,
I know it’s been a while. Just my two cents and perhaps join the “fun” discussion regarding Mr. Terry Hall. I just want to re-confirm that Mr. Terry Hall was indeed a KBR Employee in Kuwait and was directly involved with DFAC services specifically with Tamimi’s performance as a subcontractor.
You know where to reach me for further info. Take care.
Monday, February 22nd 2010 at 6:05 am |
Always welcome your comments. Welcome back!
Thursday, February 25th 2010 at 6:36 am |
I got this email from a reader who has a question about Terry Hall.
Who can tell me where Terry Hall was working in the fall of 2003?
Friday, February 26th 2010 at 12:56 am |
I almost want to say that the initial report mentioned above that he went to Kuwait in 2004 is not accurate. During my visits at Zone 2 DFAC facility under Tamimi, I can almost guarantee at 80% that Mr. Hall was already there in Kuwait in late 2003. My visit / inspections started in Sept through Dec of 2003. Considering that I could be mistaken; let’s even say that he went to Kuwait as early as January of 2004. If that is the case, then you can almost say that around December he would have been processing in Houston with KBR. Even if KBR processing was not in full operations in Dec due to the holidays, you can also consider he processed in Nov of 2003 in Houston. Hope that helps. I’ll look around for old documents and see what I can find. I’ll post it if I find anything supporting.
Romulus