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2 US troops indicted on bribery charges

CHICAGO — Two U.S. military personnel and several contractors allegedly exchanged nearly $100,000 to arrange contracts worth more than $1 million at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan, according to bribery and conspiracy indictments unsealed Wednesday.

The two military personnel and a co-conspirator allegedly accepted three payments of $30,000, one payment for each of three Defense Department contracts, according to the indictments unsealed at the U.S. District Court in Chicago.

Charged are Army Maj. Christopher P. West of Chicago and Air Force Sgt. Patrick W. Boyd of Rockledge, Fla., who were arraigned before District Court Judge Samuel Der-Yeghiayan. Also arraigned Wednesday were contractors Abdul Qudoos Bahkshi and Noor Alam of Afghanistan, along with Tahir Ramin of Pennsylvania and Afghanistan.

The contractors were arrested Monday as they arrived at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. A fourth contractor, Assad John Ramin of Afghanistan, Tahir Ramin’s brother, had not been arrested as of Wednesday. West served with the Illinois Army National Guard at Bagram and was arrested Monday. Boyd was arrested Tuesday.

Another Ramin brother, Zuhir Ramin, 36, told the Chicago Sun-Times that he doesn’t know about the accusations against his relatives. His brother John was out of the country, he said.

“I can’t even understand it,” Zuhir Ramin told the newspaper in a story posted on its Web site.

There were no phone listings available for Christopher P. Smith in Chicago or Patrick W. Boyd in Rockledge, Fla.

During 2004 and 2005, the Ramins paid West, Boyd and the co-conspirator $30,000 for a contract to supply the airfield with bunkers and barriers, cement structures used for force protection and perimeter walls, the indictment alleges.

Separately, the indictment says Alam and his company, Northern Reconstruction Organization, paid West, Boyd and a co-conspirator $30,000 for a contract to provide asphalt paving services at airfield. Qudoos and his Naweed Bahkshi Company are accused of paying West, Boyd and a co-conspirator $30,000 for a second asphalt paving contract.

“These contracts were meant to protect U.S. soldiers serving their country, and we will not tolerate corruption that deprives the troops of the benefits of competitively-sourced goods and services,” Thomas O. Barnett, assistant attorney general in charge of the Department of Defense’s Antitrust Division said in a news release Wednesday.

Brig. Gen. Rodney Johnson, the commanding general of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, promised in the same news release to continue investigating allegations of contractor fraud.

“Anyone who is contemplating putting themselves in a position where their selfishness and greed overtakes their honor and sense of duty to the nation and taxpayers they serve should beware,” Johnson said.

Those indicted face up to 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the bribery charges and up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the conspiracy charges, according to the Defense Department. The companies, Northern Reconstruction Organization and Naweed Bahkshi Co., could face fines of up to $500,000 on similar charges.