MIAMI – A Georgia businessman has been convicted on federal charges for paying bribes to Honduran government officials in exchange for lucrative contracts, prosecutors announced this week.
Carl Alan Zaglin, 70, of Marietta, was found guilty by a federal jury of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), violating the FCPA, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami, Zaglin funneled hundreds of thousands of dollars through intermediaries to bribe Honduran officials, securing over $10 million in government contracts for his company, Atlanco LLC. Atlanco supplied uniforms and tactical gear to the Honduran National Police and other agencies.
The bribery occurred between March 2015 and November 2019, and investigators say the scheme was carefully concealed. Zaglin and his co-conspirators used coded language like “commissions” and “fees” to disguise the bribes. They also used nicknames, fake brokerage agreements, and communicated via encrypted messaging apps and personal emails.
To launder the funds, prosecutors said Zaglin routed the money through U.S. bank accounts and foreign financial systems, including Belize.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami, with support from the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and authorities in Belize, Colombia, and Spain.
Zaglin now faces up to 20 years in prison for money laundering, and up to five years for each FCPA charge. A sentencing date has not yet been announced.
