Last week the DOJ announced the unsealing of an indictment criminally charging:
Carl Alan Zaglin (the owner of a Georgia-based manufacturer of law enforcement uniforms and accessories);
Francisco Roberto Cosenza Centeno (former Executive Director of the Comité Técnico del Fideicomiso para la Administración del Fondo de Protección y Seguridad Poblacional (TASA) a Honduran governmental entity that procured goods for the Honduran National Police); and
Aldo Nestor Marchena (a dual citizen of the U.S. and Peru)
for their alleged participation in a scheme to pay and conceal bribes to Honduran government officials to secure contracts to provide uniforms and other goods to the Honduran National Police.
Although not named in the indictment, the “Georgia company” is presumably Tru-Spec (owned by Atlanco, formerly Atlanta Army Navy Company).
In an interesting connection to a prior FCPA enforcement action, Luis Berkman (a dual citizen of the U.S. and Bolivia) is identified as the Vice President of International Sales at Georgia Company, the father of Bryan Berkman and related by marriage to Aldo Nestor Marchena. As highlighted in this prior post, in 2021 Luis and Bryan Berkman (and others) were criminally charged in connection with a bribery scheme to secure a tear gas contract in Bolivia.
According to the indictment, Zaglin, Marchena, and others conspired to “offer, promise to pay, and pay bribes to Honduran government officials in order to obtain and retain contracts with, and receive payment from, the Honduran government, for and with, and direct business to, Georgia Company 1, New York Company 1 (a New York company headquartered in Pennsylvania that was a manufacturer of military and police equipment including tear gas containers), and others.
According to the indictment, Marchena “received a commission for his assistance in delivering the payments to Honduran government officials.” The indictment further alleges that Zaglin, Marchena and others took steps to conceal both (i) their agreement to pay bribes to Francisco Roberto Cosenza Centeno, Foreign Official 1 (a senior official at TASA who oversaw the work of Francisco Roberto Cosenza Centeno), and others, and (ii) their payments of bribes to Francisco Roberto Cosenza Centeno, Foreign Official 1, and others, including by creating sham contracts and fraudulent invoices, and by opening bank accounts in the Southern District of Florida in the name of front companies.”
The indictment contains allegations regarding: (i) a $4.8 million uniform contract with TASA; (ii) a $5.6 million uniform contract with TASA; (iii) a $480,000 contract for tear gas launchers and ammunition; and (iv) a bid for a $7.5 million uniform contract with TASA.
Based on the above allegations, Zaglin and Marchena are charged with conspiracy to violate the FCPA’s anti-bribery provisions and Zaglin is charged with substantive violations of the anti-bribery provisions.
Zaglin, Marchena and Francisco Roberto Cosenza Centeno (the alleged foreign official) are further charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering and the later two individuals are charged with substantive money laundering offenses and engaging in transactions in criminally derived property.
