Federal judge in RI sentences Army bribe-taker
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By Ann McGlynn | Thursday, February 21, 2008 |
A decorated career military man will spend approximately two years in federal prison for accepting $50,000 in $100 bills from a man who wanted to do business with the U.S. Army in Kuwait and Iraq.
Peleti “Pete” Peleti Jr. of Hawaii was sentenced to 28 months in U.S. District Court in Rock Island. During a three-hour hearing, attorneys argued about the appropriate sentence for Peleti and one federal agent talked of a party house owned and operated by another businessman now convicted of giving bribes to attempt to gain favor of contract personnel.
Peleti is a chief warrant officer with 24 years in the military. He has earned several honors, including two Bronze Stars.
He cried as he asked the judge for leniency, saying he was in a “dysfunctional state of mind.” His mother and two siblings died, his wife left him and he was working seven days a week, several hours a day on long deployments overseas.
“Until recently, my record has been unblemished,” he said while asking for probation.
Peleti’s attorney, Lewis Romero, said the stress and pressure of being at war and away from home took its toll.
During a passionate plea, Romero turned to Peleti and said, “Shame on you for feeling the pressure of battling the terrorists for us, Mr. Peleti.” He later asked how many wars it will take to “understand that good men are affected by war in bad ways.”
Jeff Lang, first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of Illinois, disagreed, saying Peleti was “keenly aware” of the “absolute prohibitions” against taking gifts from potential vendors.
“He violated the Army’s trust and his oath,” Lang said. “He became corrupt.”
The case is prosecuted here because it involved an Arsenal-based contract, the Logistics Civil Augmentation Program.
Peleti was the Army’s theater food service adviser for Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan while based at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, when he took the $50,000 in December 2005, officials said.
According to federal authorities, the president and other officials from a company came to Peleti to inquire about landing a contract for paper goods and plastic utensils at military cafeterias. Peleti, upon finding out that the contract had already been given to another company, attempted to convince the Army that the Kuwait-based company’s products were superior although they cost more.
The Army said no and Peleti reported that to the company president in a meeting at the firm’s offices. The company president then handed Peleti the sack of money. The soldier took it and left, hiding the money in his clothes so his driver would not see, Lang added. Peleti then continued to have telephone conversations with the man.
It was not the first bribe offer Peleti had received while serving in the Middle East, officials said. He also spent considerable amount of time at a party house owned by Tamimi, another contractor. An executive of that company, Shabbir Khan, exchanged gifts and favors with Peleti as well. He is now in federal prison on a charge of making a false statement to federal authorities.
Peleti also must pay restitution and a $7,500 fine. He will serve two years of supervised release after his prison sentence.
Ann McGlynn can be contacted at (563) 383-2336 or amcglynn@qctimes.com.
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