In September 2013, a subsidiary of the Glenn Marine Group, ship support contractor Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA), became the central public focus of an ongoing investigation into a corruption scandal within the US Navy which has become popularly known as the Fat Leonard scandal. In 2010, Navy officials became suspicious that some of the bills submitted by Francis’ GDMA company from Thailand were padded. According to prosecutors investigating the case, the company overcharged the Navy for goods and services by an amount that exceeded 20 million dollars. The company's chief executive, president and chairman, Leonard Glenn Francis, also known as 'Fat Leonard,' allegedly recruited two moles within the United States Seventh Fleet and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), who would alert him whensoever naval auditors probed Glenn Marine business transactions. In exchange, prosecutors charge that Francis supplied navy officials with prostitutes, cigars, travel expenses, 5-star accommodations, and other lavish perks.
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American naval personnel involvement
A number of American naval personnel have been arrested as a result of the investigation, including two navy commanders, a navy captain, and a special agent with NCIS. The chief of naval intelligence was stripped of his security clearance. Also, two admirals were suspended, and three admirals were censured by Ray Mabus, the Secretary of the Navy, and forced into retirement after it was determined that they improperly accepted gifts from Francis. Those were Rear Adm. Terry Kraft, commander of Naval Forces in Japan, and two other rear admirals, Michael Miller and David Pimpo. Those three officers served with the USS Ronald Reagan strike group in 2006 and 2007 while the bribery occurred. In addition, the US Navy has canceled all contracts with GDMA.
Arrest of Leonard Glenn Fat Leonard Francis
US Federal agents lured Francis, a Malaysian national, to a San Diego hotel in the US in September 2013, and arrested him in a sting operation after a three-year secret investigation. He remains in custody in the US. On January 15, 2015, Francis, 50, pleaded guilty to all charges in San Diego federal court. He admitted to bribing scores of U.S. Navy officials with $500,000 in cash, sex from prostitutes, lavish hotel stays, and luxury goods. Leonard admitted to using his Navy contacts, including US Navy ship captains, to obtain classified information and to bilk the Navy out of about $20 million by steering ships to specific ports in the Pacific and falsifying service charges. In his plea, Francis identified seven Navy officials who accepted bribes. The 6-foot-3-inch, 350-pound Malaysian playboy faces a maximum prison sentence of 25 years and agreed to forfeit $35 million in personal assets.
Arrest of Captain Dusek
On October 2, 2013, near the end of the three-year investigation, Navy officials boarded and relieved Capt. Daniel P. Dusek of his command of the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard. Fifteen months later on January 15, 2015, federal prosecutors obtained a guilty plea from Dusek on charges of bribery for supplying classified ship movements in the Asia-Pacific region to Glenn Marine in return for prostitutes and luxury hotel stays worth over $10,000. Dusek arranged for the carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and the amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu to stop at ports where Francis' firm could service the ships. Dusek was released on $200,000 bail pending his sentencing hearing set for April 3, 2015. The previous week, on January 2, 2015, Cmdr. Jose Luis Sanchez pleaded guilty to supplying secret ship movement schedules in return for prostitutes, luxury travel and $100,000 in cash over a four year period.
Conviction of Dusek
Captain Daniel Dusek, who oversaw operations in the US Pacific Fleet, became the highest-ranking Navy officer to be convicted in one of the US military’s worst bribery scandals. In addition to the 46-month prison sentence, a US judge ordered Dusek to pay $100,000 in fines and restitution for passing ship and submarine schedules to Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA).
Rear Admiral Robert Gilbeau
In June 2016, the US Navy announced that Rear Admiral Robert Gilbeau was to be charged in the case. He would be the 14th officer charged, and the most senior. He had served as a supply officer in several ships served by GDMA.
Rear Admiral Adrian Jansen
In February 2017, Adm. Phil Davidson, Commander, United States Fleet Forces, awarded Non-Judicial punishment under Art. 92 of the UCMJ to Rear Admiral Adrian Jansen, a Foreign Area Officer who had recently completed a tour as Naval Attache in Jakarta, and Defense Attache in Beijing. The investigation into RADM Jansen stems from the Consolidated Disposition Authority (CDA) established by then-Navy Secretary Ray Mabus to further review GDMA cases forwarded by DoJ to the DON. The investigation showed that "Jansen had an inappropriately familiar relationship with Leonard Francis while serving as the Naval Attache, Jakarta, Indonesia from 2010 to 2013. He attended multiple private dinners paid for by Leonard over the course of two years, and accepted gifts of wine. The gifts of dinners and wine totaled more than $5000.00, and exceeds amounts permitted by law and authorized under Department of Navy (DON) regulations. In addition, Jansen had a duty to report his contact with Leonard, as well as the acceptance of the gifts, and he failed to do so." Jansen received a punitive letter of reprimand and forfeiture of $3,750.00 pay per month for two months. In conjunction with Admiral's Mast, Jansen submitted a voluntary request for retirement.