{"id":59084,"date":"2025-06-13T12:01:33","date_gmt":"2025-06-13T19:01:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=59084"},"modified":"2025-06-13T12:01:33","modified_gmt":"2025-06-13T19:01:33","slug":"usaid-official-three-executives-plead-guilty-in-550m-bribery-scheme-two-companies-admit-to-bribery-and-securities-fraud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=59084","title":{"rendered":"USAID Official, Three Executives Plead Guilty in $550M Bribery Scheme; Two Companies Admit to Bribery and Securities Fraud"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\" data-start=\"24\" data-end=\"219\"><span style=\"font-size: 21px;\"><strong>MARYLAND<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-1057 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/Justice-Depart-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/Justice-Depart-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/Justice-Depart-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/Justice-Depart.jpg 320w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"24\" data-end=\"219\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">Four men\u2014including a former USAID contracting officer and three company presidents\u2014have pleaded guilty to a decade-long bribery scheme tied to over $550 million in U.S. taxpayer-funded contracts, federal officials announced Thursday.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"221\" data-end=\"700\">\n<li data-start=\"221\" data-end=\"341\">\n<p data-start=\"223\" data-end=\"341\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"223\" data-end=\"242\">Roderick Watson<\/strong>, 57, of Maryland, admitted to accepting bribes while serving as a contracting officer for USAID.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"342\" data-end=\"484\">\n<p data-start=\"344\" data-end=\"484\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"344\" data-end=\"361\">Walter Barnes<\/strong>, 46, of Maryland, president of PM Consulting Group (Vistant), pleaded guilty to bribery conspiracy and securities fraud.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"485\" data-end=\"591\">\n<p title=\"\" data-start=\"487\" data-end=\"591\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"487\" data-end=\"503\">Darryl Britt<\/strong>, 64, of Florida, president of Apprio Inc., also pleaded guilty to bribery conspiracy.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"592\" data-end=\"700\">\n<p title=\"\" data-start=\"594\" data-end=\"700\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"594\" data-end=\"608\">Paul Young<\/strong>, 62, of Maryland, a subcontractor for both companies, pleaded guilty to bribery conspiracy.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"702\" data-end=\"996\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">Vistant and Apprio, both small businesses under the SBA 8(a) program and USAID contractors, admitted criminal liability. They entered into three-year deferred prosecution agreements, which required cooperation with federal investigators, adherence to ethics compliance programs, and regular progress reporting to the DOJ.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">\u201cWatson was entrusted to serve the interests of the American people \u2014 not his own \u2014 and his criminal actions for his own personal gain undermine the integrity of our public institutions,\u201d said<strong> U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes for the District of Maryland.<\/strong> \u201cPublic trust is a hallmark of our nation\u2019s values, so corruption within a federal government agency is intolerable. This office, along with our law enforcement partners, will continue to pursue and prosecute corruption at every level to ensure accountability and protect public trust.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"69\" data-end=\"383\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">Beginning in 2013, <strong data-start=\"88\" data-end=\"107\">Roderick Watson<\/strong>, a USAID contracting officer, accepted more than <strong data-start=\"157\" data-end=\"181\">$1 million in bribes<\/strong> from <strong data-start=\"187\" data-end=\"203\">Darryl Britt<\/strong> (Apprio Inc.) and <strong data-start=\"222\" data-end=\"239\">Walter Barnes<\/strong> (Vistant) to steer lucrative federal contracts their way\u2014bypassing competitive bidding under the SBA 8(a) program for disadvantaged businesses.<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"385\" data-end=\"629\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"385\" data-end=\"399\">Paul Young<\/strong>, a subcontractor, helped conceal the bribes through the use of shell companies, fake invoices, and disguised payroll payments. Perks to Watson included cash, electronics, luxury event tickets, mortgage down payments, and jobs for relatives.<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"631\" data-end=\"824\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">When Apprio aged out of the 8(a) program, Barnes and Britt flipped roles, making <strong data-start=\"711\" data-end=\"743\">Vistant the prime contractor<\/strong> and <strong data-start=\"748\" data-end=\"776\">Apprio the subcontractor<\/strong>, all still funneled through Watson\u2019s influence.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"826\" data-end=\"854\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">Securities Fraud Schemes<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"856\" data-end=\"1274\">\n<li data-start=\"856\" data-end=\"1121\">\n<p data-start=\"858\" data-end=\"1121\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">In <strong data-start=\"861\" data-end=\"869\">2022<\/strong>, Barnes and Watson deceived a small business investment company (SBIC) into a <strong data-start=\"948\" data-end=\"968\">$14 million loan<\/strong> to Vistant, securing stock warrants and a $10 million dividend for Barnes. Watson misled the lender by hiding his bribe-filled relationship with Barnes.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1122\" data-end=\"1274\">\n<p data-start=\"1124\" data-end=\"1274\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">In <strong data-start=\"1127\" data-end=\"1135\">2023<\/strong>, Britt and Apprio duped another SBIC into investing <strong data-start=\"1188\" data-end=\"1202\">$4 million<\/strong> and issuing a matching loan, again omitting years of bribery to Watson.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-start=\"1276\" data-end=\"1318\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">Deferred Prosecution Agreements (DPAs)<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"1320\" data-end=\"1684\">\n<li data-start=\"1320\" data-end=\"1476\">\n<p data-start=\"1322\" data-end=\"1476\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"1322\" data-end=\"1332\">Apprio<\/strong> admitted guilt and accepted a <strong data-start=\"1363\" data-end=\"1380\">$51.7 million<\/strong> penalty, but citing inability to pay, reached a <strong data-start=\"1429\" data-end=\"1458\">$500,000 civil settlement<\/strong> under DOJ review.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1477\" data-end=\"1684\">\n<p data-start=\"1479\" data-end=\"1684\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"1479\" data-end=\"1490\">Vistant<\/strong> was hit with an <strong data-start=\"1507\" data-end=\"1524\">$86.4 million<\/strong> penalty, but similarly settled for <strong data-start=\"1560\" data-end=\"1572\">$100,000<\/strong> due to financial constraints. Both firms must cooperate, implement ethics programs, and undergo DOJ monitoring.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-start=\"1686\" data-end=\"1706\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">Sentencing Dates<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"1708\" data-end=\"1909\">\n<li data-start=\"1708\" data-end=\"1763\">\n<p data-start=\"1710\" data-end=\"1763\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"1710\" data-end=\"1720\">Watson<\/strong>: Faces up to 15 years; sentencing Oct. 6<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1764\" data-end=\"1812\">\n<p data-start=\"1766\" data-end=\"1812\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"1766\" data-end=\"1775\">Young<\/strong>: Up to 5 years; sentencing Sept. 3<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1813\" data-end=\"1861\">\n<p data-start=\"1815\" data-end=\"1861\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"1815\" data-end=\"1824\">Britt<\/strong>: Up to 5 years; sentencing July 28<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1862\" data-end=\"1909\">\n<p data-start=\"1864\" data-end=\"1909\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"1864\" data-end=\"1874\">Barnes<\/strong>: Up to 5 years; sentencing Oct. 14<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"1911\" data-end=\"2052\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"1911\" data-end=\"1937\">Investigating agencies<\/strong>: FBI, USAID-OIG, and IRS-CI<\/span><br data-start=\"1965\" data-end=\"1968\" \/><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong data-start=\"1968\" data-end=\"1983\">Prosecutors<\/strong>: DOJ Fraud Section and U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office, District of Maryland.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>MARYLAND Four men\u2014including a former USAID contracting officer and three company presidents\u2014have pleaded guilty to a decade-long bribery scheme tied to over $550 million in U.S. taxpayer-funded contracts, federal officials announced Thursday&#8230;.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":59085,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-59084","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>USAID Official, Three Executives Plead Guilty in $550M Bribery Scheme; 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