Fat Leonard Case: Leonard Glenn Francis Sentenced To 15 Years In Prison For Massive Bribery, Fraud And Disappearance

The U.S. Justice Department released the below information today:

SAN DIEGO – Leonard Glenn Francis (seen in the above photo), mastermind of an unprecedented bribery and fraud scheme targeting the U.S. Navy, was sentenced in federal court today to 180 months in prison and ordered to pay $20 million in restitution to the Navy and a $150,000 fine. Francis was also ordered to forfeit $35 million in ill-gotten proceeds from his crimes.

Francis’ sentence reflects admissions in his first guilty plea in 2015 concerning bribery and fraud, his extensive cooperation with the government, and his guilty plea today for failing to appear for his original sentencing hearing in 2022. U.S. District Judge Janis L. Sammartino handed down a 164-month sentence for bribery and fraud and 16 months for failing to appear, to be served consecutively.

Francis admitted today in his second plea agreement that he fled the country to avoid his sentencing hearing in September 2022. Around September 4, 2022, while he was on house arrest, Francis cut off a GPS monitor he was required to wear and disappeared, first fleeing to Mexico, then Cuba, and ultimately, Venezuela. He was later arrested in Venezuela and brought back to the U.S. on December 20, 2023.

Francis, 60, a Malaysian citizen most recently living in Singapore, was initially arrested in San Diego on September 16, 2013, and remained in pretrial custody until December 18, 2017, when the court granted his request for release pending sentencing due to a medical condition. Francis served four years and three months in custody before he was released on bond and ordered into house arrest. He remained on bond under the supervision of U.S. Pretrial Services for almost five years, from December 17, 2017, until he fled the U.S. on September 4, 2022. He has remained in custody in the U.S. since his return on December 20, 2023. Based on today’s sentence and the court’s finding that Francis has so far served 2,333 days of his sentence - including time spent in custody in Venezuela at the request of the U.S. government - Francis has an estimated 8.5 years remaining.

According to admissions in his initial 2015 plea agreement, and other court documents, Francis and his company, Glenn Defense Marine Asia, or GDMA, which provided services to U.S. Navy ships in Asia Pacific ports, gave co-conspirators millions of dollars in things of value, including over $500,000 in cash; hundreds of thousands of dollars in the services of prostitutes and associated expenses; hundreds of thousands of dollars in travel expenses, including airfare, often first or business class, luxurious hotel stays, incidentals, and spa treatments; hundreds of thousands of dollars in lavish meals, top-shelf alcohol and wine, and entertainment; and hundreds of thousands of dollars in luxury gifts, including designer handbags and leather goods, watches, fountain pens, Kobe beef, Spanish suckling pigs, designer furniture, Cuban cigars, consumer electronics, ornamental swords, and hand-made ship models.

Francis admitted that in return, U.S. Navy personnel and command staff advocated on behalf of Francis and his company during the procurement process and provided classified information about various U.S. Navy ships’ port visits, proprietary U.S. Navy information such as details about competitors’ bids for U.S. Navy contracts, and information about Naval Criminal Investigative Service and U.S. Navy investigations into GDMA’s practices, among other things.

In his 2015 plea agreement, Francis also admitted to defrauding the U.S. Navy of tens of millions of dollars by routinely overbilling for goods and services provided, including fuel, tugboats, and sewage disposal.

GDMA the corporation was also sentenced today to five years of probation and ordered to pay a $36 million fine.

According to the government’s sentencing memo, Francis’ scheme to defraud the United States over many years and the entrenched bribery and corruption he fostered within the U.S. Navy were aggravated and egregious. By contrast, once caught, he pleaded guilty, and cooperated extensively with authorities.

Over the course of several years, Francis met with government investigators dozens of times to discuss unprecedented levels of corruption within the U.S. Navy. Francis provided detailed information about hundreds of Sailors, from petty officers to admirals, and turned over financial records, photographs, receipts and Navy contracting documents. Corroborated information from Francis substantially assisted the United States in its investigation.

“Mr. Francis’ sentencing brings closure to an expansive fraud scheme that he perpetrated against the U.S. Navy with assistance from various Navy officials. This fraud conspiracy ultimately cost the American taxpayer millions of dollars and weakened the public’s trust in some of our Navy’s senior leaders. Mr. Francis’ actions not only degraded the 7th Fleet’s readiness but shook the Fleet’s trust in its leadership who furthered his corrupt practices,” said Kelly P. Mayo, the Director of the U.S. Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS). “The exhaustive joint investigation exemplifies the lengths DCIS and its investigative partners will go to in order to pursue justice for the American taxpayer and our warfighters.  DCIS will continue to protect our nation’s precious resources so they are not lost to illicit schemes that only serve one’s greed and self-aggrandizement to the detriment of our national security.”

“Leonard Francis put the safety of our warfighters and Department of Navy assets at risk,” said NCIS Director Omar Lopez. “He disregarded the law and lined his pockets by bribing U.S. Navy officials and others to exploit sensitive national security information. NCIS remains committed to protecting Department of the Navy personnel and resources. As we reach the final sentencing in this complex and intensive procurement fraud investigation that spanned over a decade, I want to thank the countless NCIS professionals and partner agencies involved.”

Note: You can also read my Counterterrorism magazine Q&A with Craig Whitlock, the author of Fat Leonard: How One Man Bribed, Bilked, and Seduced the U.S. Navy, via the below link:

Paul Davis On Crime: My Counterterrorism Magazine Q&A With Craig Whitlock, The Author Of “Fat Leonard: How One Man Bribed, Bilked and Seduced the U.S. Navy”