{"id":38030,"date":"2017-06-26T20:10:51","date_gmt":"2017-06-26T20:10:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2017\/06\/26\/first-military-case-in-fat-leonard-navy-bribery-scandal-begins\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T19:42:48","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T19:42:48","slug":"first-military-case-in-fat-leonard-navy-bribery-scandal-begins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2017\/06\/26\/first-military-case-in-fat-leonard-navy-bribery-scandal-begins\/","title":{"rendered":"First military case in &#8216;Fat Leonard&#8217; Navy bribery scandal begins"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><div>  NORFOLK, Va. \u2014 While he was stationed in Singapore, a U.S. Navy commander ate suckling pigs worth $400 apiece, attended a Gucci fashion show with his wife and enjoyed the services of prostitutes \u2014 all courtesy of a Malaysian defense contractor, Navy prosecutors alleged Monday.  <br\/> <br\/> <\/div> <div>  Cmdr. David Alexander Morales is the latest Navy official to be charged in a wide-ranging bribery scandal in which officers allegedly provided ship schedules and important access to Singapore-based businessman Leonard Francis.  <br\/> <br\/> <\/div> <div>  Nicknamed &#8220;Fat Leonard&#8221; for his large size, Francis was determined to maintain his firm&#8217;s market share in servicing American warships in Asian ports, a lucrative operation that spanned 25 years and allowed him to overbill the Navy by nearly $35 million.  <br\/> <br\/> <\/div> <div>  The Department of Justice has already filed charges against 25 people, including Francis as well as 20 former and current officers in the Navy. Several, including a retired admiral, have pleaded guilty.  <br\/> <br\/> <\/div> <div>  But Morales, 49, is the first to be charged in the Navy&#8217;s military court system. His journey effectively began Monday at a preliminary hearing in Norfolk, Virginia, as prosecutors flipped through pages of text messages between him and Francis while itemizing the various gifts Morales allegedly received.  <br\/> <br\/> <\/div> <div>  His attorney said after the hearing that the Navy has a weak case, which federal officials had declined to prosecute.  <br\/> <br\/> <\/div> <div>  &#8220;The leftovers are for the Navy,&#8221; said Frank Spinner, a Colorado-based military defense lawyer. &#8220;The sharks have been prosecuted. Now they&#8217;re going after the minnows.&#8221;  <br\/> <br\/> <\/div><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1765\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/us-navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-71227\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/us-navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/us-navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg?resize=204,300 204w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/us-navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg?resize=768,1130 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/us-navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg?resize=696,1024 696w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/us-navy-cmdr-david-morales.jpg.jpg?resize=1044,1536 1044w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span>This Jan. 9, 2015, photo shows U.S. Navy Cmdr. David Morales, assigned to Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Korea, during a tour of the a memorial in Pyeongtaek, Republic of Korea. T<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span>Photo Credit: Chief Mass Communication Specialist Wendy Wyman\/Navy via AP<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Much of the hearing centered on the testimony of Janice Horst, a special agent who conducts criminal investigations for the Department of Defense&#8217;s Inspector General. She described a friendship between the two men in which Francis paid for expensive dinners, liquor and prostitutes when Morales&#8217; wife wasn&#8217;t around. When she was, Horst said Francis bought the couple tickets to fashion shows or a Julio Iglesias concert. <br\/> <br\/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Horst said Francis seemed to be grooming Morales to provide him with important information, and that Francis had asked the commander for ship schedules. Morales told Francis that he wouldn&#8217;t provide any classified information. <br\/> <br\/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cmdr. Angela Tang, a Navy prosecutor, said Morales also gave Francis the email of an admiral, introduced him to other contacts and recommended others for Francis to approach. <br\/> <br\/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She said Morales was &#8220;right on the cusp of providing unclassified ship schedules&#8221; and &#8220;seemed very eager to please Mr. Francis.&#8221; <br\/> <br\/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Morales allegedly passed along an envelope to Francis. But Spinner, Morales&#8217; defense attorney, pointed out during cross-examination that it was never recovered and its contents remain unknown. <br\/> <br\/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Spinner also said the Navy lacks hard evidence that Morales engaged with prostitutes beyond claims made by Francis, who has since become a witness for prosecutors. <br\/> <br\/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Spinner said Morales may have had a close relationship with Francis &#8220;but that doesn&#8217;t mean it crossed the line.&#8221; <br\/> <br\/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A Navy captain who oversaw the preliminary hearing will decide in the coming weeks whether to recommend Morales for a court-martial. An admiral will then decide if one should proceed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Navy has charged one of its commanders with accepting gifts and sex with prostitutes from a Malaysian defense 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