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Former Navy Noncommissioned Officer Sentenced to 24 Months for Accepting Bribes While in Afghanistan
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-navy-noncommissioned-officer-sentenced-24-months-prison-accepting-bribes-while-servingFormer Navy Noncommissioned Officer Sentenced to 24 Months in Prison for Accepting Bribes While Serving in Afghanistan
A former Navy noncommissioned officer was sentenced today to 24 months in prison for accepting approximately $25,000 in cash bribes from vendors while he served in Afghanistan.
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Donald P. Bunch, 46, of Pace, Florida, was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson of the Northern District of Florida, who also ordered Bunch to pay a $5,000 fine and to forfeit $25,000. Bunch pleaded guilty on Sept. 18, 2015, to a one-count information charging him with accepting bribes.
According to the plea agreement, from February 2009 to August 2009, Bunch worked as a U.S. Navy E8 senior chief at the Humanitarian Assistance Yard (HA Yard) at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan. The HA Yard purchased supplies from local Afghan vendors for use as part of the Commander’s Emergency Response Program, which enabled U.S. military commanders to respond to urgent humanitarian relief requirements in Afghanistan, Bunch admitted.
Bunch was responsible for replenishing food and supplies at the HA Yard and for selecting vendors from a pre-determined list to provide the necessary items, according to his plea. In connection with his guilty plea, Bunch admitted that his predecessor had instructed him to rotate among the vendors.
According to admissions made in connection with his plea agreement, certain Afghan vendors offered money for the purpose of influencing their contracts. Bunch admitted that he accepted a total of approximately $25,000 in bribes from the vendors and as a result, he secured on their behalf more frequent and lucrative contracts. Bunch sent greeting cards stuffed with proceeds of the bribes to his wife and used the money to pay for the construction of a new home.
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