{"id":13699,"date":"2020-01-17T14:54:55","date_gmt":"2020-01-17T14:54:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/01\/17\/op-ed-a-navy-bribery-scandal-and-the-limits-of-free-speech\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T18:41:26","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T18:41:26","slug":"op-ed-a-navy-bribery-scandal-and-the-limits-of-free-speech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/opinion\/commentary\/2020\/01\/17\/op-ed-a-navy-bribery-scandal-and-the-limits-of-free-speech\/","title":{"rendered":"Op-ed: A Navy bribery scandal and the limits of free speech"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It seems like everyone\u2019s talking about bribery these days \u2013 but I, and anyone else who works for the federal government, have to limit what we can say about what does or does not constitute an ethical or illegal lapse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am an ethicist who teaches leadership, ethics and law, and I believe a recent bribery case in the U.S. military offers an interesting and distinctive perspective through which to consider these issues. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, due to current restrictions on what federal employees can and can\u2019t say about political matters, I can\u2019t discuss all the ways that case might apply to a broader debate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nonetheless, there is one thing I can say without caveat or equivocation. Bribery laws for government officials have a powerful ethical principle at their core: If you work for the government, your actions in office are meant to serve the public interest \u2013 not your own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Retired Navy Capt. Jeffrey Breslau, left, pleaded guilty Tuesday to providing public affairs services to “Fat Leonard” Glenn Francis while serving as an active-duty PAO. He is shown here in 2012, taking command of a public affairs unit in Virginia, the same time he was moonlighting with Francis, according to his plea agreement. (U.S. Navy photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Trouble in the 7th Fleet<\/b><\/i><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The so-called \u201cFat Leonard scandal<\/a>\u201d is the largest bribery and corruption case<\/a> in U.S. Navy history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The key player is Leonard Glenn Francis, a Malaysian-born businessman based in Singapore who was commonly referred to as \u201cFat Leonard\u201d because of his 350-pound weight<\/a>. He ran a company called Glenn Defense Marine Asia that had U.S. government contracts to provide various services to Navy ships in Asian ports \u2013 docking, refueling, sewage removal<\/a> and shore transportation for both cargo and personnel<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2015, Francis pleaded guilty to plying Navy officers<\/a> with cash and favors in exchange for their efforts to steer the Navy\u2019s Pacific fleet to ports where his company could provide services. Then, the company would fabricate bids by nonexistent companies to make its own charges look competitive, overbill the Navy for services<\/a> and even draw up fake invoices to collect money for goods and services it never provided to the ships and crews.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The case is perhaps best known for the fact that one of the most common favors Francis provided were paid sexual partners: He even kept meticulous notes<\/a> about the peccadilloes of different officers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More significant for U.S. taxpayers is the fact that the decade-long scam ultimately bilked the Navy out of more than $35 million<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\t