A former contracting officer for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and three business leaders recently pleaded guilty to a $550 million bribery scheme.
In a Thursday press release, the U.S. Department of Justice announced, “Four men, including a government contracting officer for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and three owners and presidents of companies, have pleaded guilty for their roles in a decade-long bribery scheme involving at least 14 prime contracts worth over $550 million in U.S. taxpayer dollars.”
The Justice Department confirmed that 57-year-old Roderick Watson, who worked as a contracting officer for USAID, pleaded guilty to bribery of a public official; 46-year-old Walter Barnes, who was the president of PM Consulting Group LCC, which conducted business as Vistant, pleaded guilty to securities fraud and conspiracy to commit bribery of a public official; 64-year-old Darryl Britt, who was the president of Apprio, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery of a public official; and 62-year-old Paul Young, who was the president of a subcontracting company used by Vistant and Apprio, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery of a public official.
According to the Justice Department, Watson began receiving bribes from Britt in 2013 and used his influence as a USAID contracting officer to award government contracts to Britt’s business while the business was part of a federal business development program. After Britt’s business graduated from the federal program, a business owned by Barnes that was previously a subcontractor to Britt’s business on one of the contracts Watson helped secure, took its place and became a top contractor with USAID from 2018 to 2022.
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The Justice Department revealed that Watson received roughly $1 million worth in bribes, “including cash, laptops, thousands of dollars in tickets to a suite at an NBA game, a country club wedding, downpayments on two residential mortgages, cellular phones, and jobs for relatives.” The Justice Department explained that the bribes were given to Watson in return for “manipulating the procurement process at USAID” to award contracts to the companies run by Barnes and Britt.
According to Thursday’s press release, the two company leaders paid Watson’s bribes through Young.
“The defendants sought to enrich themselves at the expense of American taxpayers through bribery and fraud,” Matthew R. Galeotti, the head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, said. “Their scheme violated the public trust by corrupting the federal government’s procurement process.”
“Anybody who cares about good and effective government should be concerned about the waste, fraud, and abuse in government agencies, including USAID,” Galeotti added. “Those who engage in bribery schemes to exploit the U.S. Small Business Administration’s vital economic programs for small businesses — whether individuals or corporations acting through them — will be held to account.”
