{"id":43096,"date":"2018-09-01T22:24:17","date_gmt":"2018-09-01T22:24:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T19:08:24","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T19:08:24","slug":"navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/","title":{"rendered":"Navy\u2019s \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case implodes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NAVAL STATION NORFOLK, Va. \u2014 With the close of the Navy\u2019s first \u201cFat Leonard\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navytimes.com\/news\/your-navy\/2018\/08\/29\/navy-fighter-pilot-faces-fat-leonard-charges\/\" target=_blank>court-martial trial<\/a>, the defendant is going to the brig but he escaped the most serious charges and potentially jeopardized future federal fraud cases against a string of past and present sailors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cmdr. David Morales was found guilty of only two of the five charges he faced \u2014 conduct unbecoming an officer and failing to report foreign contacts on his security clearance renewal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After closing arguments on Friday, the Navy trial judge, Capt. Charles N. Purnell, deliberated overnight and delivered a verdict that stripped out the conspiracy, bribery and making a false official statement charges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Saturday, Purnell sentenced the fighter pilot to 165 days of confinement, forfeiture of $30,000 in pay over the next five months and an additional $5,000 fine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Morales faced <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navytimes.com\/news\/your-navy\/2018\/08\/28\/defense-in-norfolk-fat-leonard-case-seeks-mistrial\/\" target=_blank>17 years behind bars<\/a> if he was convicted on the original charges. After Purnell gutted the most serious remaining specifications on Saturday he was still staring at a maximum term of two-and-a-half years in the brig.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He ended up with less than six months in prison.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2018\/05\/31\/why-the-lawyer-for-a-fighter-pilot-accused-in-fat-leonard-scandal-says-hes-ready-for-a-fight\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Why the lawyer for a Navy fighter pilot accused in the \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 scandal says he\u2019s ready for a fight<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The Navy has postponed the court martial of Cmdr. David Morales until sometime in August and have vowed there will be no plea deal.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And Purnell also didn\u2019t order a \u201cdismissal,\u201d which is akin to a dishonorable discharge for officers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s because the judge seemed unpersuaded by much of the Navy\u2019s evidence against Morales, which even military prosecutors conceded was mostly circumstantial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Purnell especially discounted the sworn testimony of Leonard Glenn \u201cFat Leonard\u201d Francis, the Malaysian tycoon at the heart of the bribery and fraud scandal reverberating across the Japan-based 7th Fleet\u2019s area of operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSomeone stood up to Leonard Francis and he was found to be untruthful,\u201d said <a href=\"https:\/\/militaryadvocate.com\/\" target=_blank>Frank Spinner<\/a>, a retired Air Force attorney who represented Morales during his court-martial trial. \u201cThere\u2019s now a crack in the prosecution dike for the remaining defendants awaiting trial in San Diego.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1140\" height=\"855\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-26113\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg 1140w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg?resize=300,225 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg?resize=768,576 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,768 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1140px) 100vw, 1140px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lawyers for the government want to move the court martial for Cmdr. David Morales to San Diego and have asked a military judge in Norfolk to grant their motion. (Navy)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Military prosecutors declined comment but pointed to their closing argument, which portrayed Morales as guilty on all counts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">During nearly a week of testimony in the Norfolk Naval Base courtroom here, Spinner had torn into the their case, even demanding a mistrial because he believed Francis repeatedly lied during his recent videotaped deposition in San Diego, where he\u2019s convalescing from unspecified health problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Spinner urged Purnell to find that Francis perjured himself during the deposition, but the judge only indicated that Francis&#8217; fibs impeached his testimony.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Arrested in a San Diego sting operation in 2013, Francis pleaded guilty two years later to defrauding the Navy of at least $35 million in bloated invoices and fraudulent fees incurred while servicing American warships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He has yet to be sentenced.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2018\/03\/08\/fat-leonard-wrongdoing-not-a-definite-career-killer-for-navy-officers\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"157\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/USS-Salvor.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">\u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 wrongdoing not a definite career killer for Navy officers<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Disciplinary records show several officers found to have accepted gifts from &quot;Fat Leonard&quot; were recommended to retain command.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Francis secured those dirty deals by bribing Navy officials with \u201cThai SEAL team\u201d prostitutes, luxury hotel rooms, top shelf booze, opulent feasts and cash tucked into envelopes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Navy prosecutors tried to make the same allegations stick to Morales, suggesting that he sent Francis&#8217; now-defunct Glenn Defense Marine Asia company secret ship movement information and later tried to recruit other officers to join Francis in a conspiracy that connected ports across the western Pacific.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But Purnell didn\u2019t buy it. Instead, he focused on what Morales and his defense team didn\u2019t try to deny, that the pilot let Francis wine and dine him between 2012 and 2013 and never reported the lavish gifts from the contractor to his commanders or on his disclosure forms to keep his security clearance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Throughout the week, military prosecutors detailed how Francis feted Morales \u2014 a sumptuous feast in Hawaii where Morales alone guzzled $2,000 worth of food and champagne; a private party at Bangkok\u2019s exclusive Pegasus Club, where Francis held court; prime seats for a Julio Iglesias concert; even suckling pigs sent to the pilot as housewarming gifts by the corrupt contractor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI find an egregious pattern of accepting gifts, almost as bad as as if I had found you guilty of conspiracy and bribery, that thoroughly compromised you as an officer,\u201d Purnell told Morales. \u201cWhen you play with fire, you get burned.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How burned federal prosecutors get by Francis&#8217; shaky testimony remains to be seen.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2017\/11\/06\/more-than-60-admirals-being-looked-at-in-fat-leonard-probe-report-says\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"264\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/635593446810885874-nav-fat-leonardjpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">More than 60 admirals being looked at in \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 probe, report says<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The Navy now acknowledges that the bribes-and-hookers scandal is impacting twice as many Navy officials as previously disclosed.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They\u2019ve charged 32 defendants, and 20 have pleaded guilty to public corruption charges. On Aug. 17, a grand jury in San Diego indicted three more retired sailors: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navytimes.com\/news\/your-navy\/2018\/08\/19\/feds-indict-three-more-in-ongoing-fat-leonard-scandal\/\" target=\"_blank\">Capt. David W. Haas<\/a>, Master Chief Petty Officer Ricarte Icmat David and Chief Petty Officer Brooks Alonzo Parks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those cases will be tried in federal district court, not before a military judge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The U.S. Attorney in San Diego got first pick on all the cases, ceding to the Navy those prosecutions likely involving only breaches of military law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Before Morales, military prosecutors had secured plea deals with ex-destroyer squadron commander Capt. John F. Steinberger and Chief Warrant Officer Brian T. Ware for their roles in the public corruption scandal.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2018\/03\/07\/o-6-and-o-5-sentenced-in-fat-leonard-case\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"236\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Steinberger.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">2 Navy officers sentenced in \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Capt. John F. Steinberger and Cmdr. Jason W. Starmer are the latest casualties of the &quot;Fat Leonard&quot; scandal.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Haas maintains his innocence but he helped to scuttle the Morales case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a written affidavit, he told Purnell that the reason Francis jetted from Singapore to Bangkok on June 22, 2013, was to meet him. Haas said that he never saw Morales, who had been deposited by Francis&#8217; limousine at the posh Conrad Hotel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That echoed what the defense team for Morales kept insisting \u2014 he joined Francis on a lark and neither provided classified ship movement information nor was ever in a position to render favors for the crooked contractor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prosecutors had leaned on Francis, who testified in his deposition that he took Morales to Bangkok for a \u201csex trip.&#8221; But in reality, cellphone text messages showed the excursion was solely to meet Haas, who could fix a contract to service the aircraft carrier George Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Defense attorneys also seized on evidence uncovered by federal investigators that revealed the hotel staff turned away the prostitutes Francis tried to send Haas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The lurid scene allegedly included a drunken Francis railing at Conrad staffers while the women retreated from the premises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Before Morales was taken to the brig, he thanked Spinner and military co-counsel Cmdr. Chris Czaplak and Lt. Travis Jones for \u201ctheir outstanding job.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Defense attorney says  the taped testimony of a corrupt contractor creates a &#8220;crack in the dike&#8221; for future prosecutions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":26112,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":88,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[29,116,117,15,88],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3250],"class_list":["post-43096","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-home","category-left-column","category-middle-column","category-news","category-your-military"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"QVB6XGIQU5ESNJZ37IHORVEN4Q","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/your-navy\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Navy\u2019s \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case implodes - Military Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Defense attorney says the taped testimony of a corrupt contractor creates a &quot;crack in the dike&quot; for future prosecutions.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Navy\u2019s \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case implodes\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Defense attorney says the taped testimony of a corrupt contractor creates a &quot;crack in the dike&quot; for future prosecutions.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Military Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-09-01T22:24:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T19:08:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mark D. Faram\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Mark D. Faram\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"Navy\u2019s \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case implodes\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2018-09-01T22:24:17+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T19:08:24+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 1017,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Navy_Ball2011.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Home\",\n\t                \"Left Column\",\n\t                \"Middle Column\",\n\t                \"News\",\n\t                \"Your Military\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Navy\u2019s \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case implodes - Military Times\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Navy_Ball2011.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2018-09-01T22:24:17+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T19:08:24+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Defense attorney says the taped testimony of a corrupt contractor creates a \\\"crack in the dike\\\" for future prosecutions.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Navy_Ball2011.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Navy_Ball2011.jpg.jpg\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/01\\\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t            \"itemListElement\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 1,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Your Military\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/news\\\/your-military\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"your-military\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Navy\u2019s \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case implodes\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Military Times\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Independent News About Your Military | Military Times\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t                        \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t                    },\n\t                    \"query-input\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t                        \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t                        \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t                    }\n\t                }\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Military Times\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/military-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/military-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"Military Times\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t            \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Navy\u2019s \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case implodes - Military Times","description":"Defense attorney says the taped testimony of a corrupt contractor creates a \"crack in the dike\" for future prosecutions.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Navy\u2019s \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case implodes","og_description":"Defense attorney says the taped testimony of a corrupt contractor creates a \"crack in the dike\" for future prosecutions.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/","og_site_name":"Military Times","article_published_time":"2018-09-01T22:24:17+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T19:08:24+00:00","author":"Mark D. Faram","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Mark D. Faram","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"Navy\u2019s \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case implodes","datePublished":"2018-09-01T22:24:17+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T19:08:24+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/"},"wordCount":1017,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Navy_Ball2011.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Home","Left Column","Middle Column","News","Your Military"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/","name":"Navy\u2019s \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case implodes - Military Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Navy_Ball2011.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2018-09-01T22:24:17+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T19:08:24+00:00","description":"Defense attorney says the taped testimony of a corrupt contractor creates a \"crack in the dike\" for future prosecutions.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Navy_Ball2011.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Navy_Ball2011.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/09\/01\/navys-fat-leonard-case-implodes\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Your Military","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/","ad_zone":"your-military"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Navy\u2019s \u2018Fat Leonard\u2019 case implodes"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/","name":"Military Times","description":"Independent News About Your Military | Military Times","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#organization","name":"Military Times","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/military-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/military-logo-white.png","caption":"Military Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Military Times","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes","push-errors":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Navy_Ball2011.jpg.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43096","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43096"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43096\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":155438,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43096\/revisions\/155438"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26112"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43096"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43096"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43096"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=43096"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}