by Gareth Vipers
Malaysian businessman Leonard Francis, infamously known as “Fat Leonard,” has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison and ordered to pay $20 million for orchestrating one of the largest corruption scandals in U.S. military history.
Francis, who masterminded a bribery and fraud scheme that spanned over several years, targeted high-ranking Navy officials with lavish gifts, including luxury travel, expensive cigars, high-end liquor, and even sex workers. This scheme allowed him to overcharge the U.S. government for providing services to Navy ships at ports across the Pacific.
In 2015, Francis pleaded guilty to bribing military officials in exchange for lucrative contracts and favorable treatment for his shipping business. The U.S. government had launched a sweeping investigation into his activities, which revealed that Francis used his connections with the U.S. Navy to secure multimillion-dollar contracts by inflating prices for services and manipulating Navy personnel.
In addition to his 15-year prison sentence, the court ordered Francis to forfeit $35 million in illicit earnings and pay a fine of $150,000. The ruling followed extensive cooperation by Francis with authorities, which included providing evidence against the Navy personnel involved in the scheme. However, his sentence also took into account his failure to appear for his original sentencing in 2022, for which he fled the country after removing his GPS monitor while under house arrest. Francis was later apprehended in Venezuela and extradited back to the U.S.
Francis, born into a commercial shipping family in Malaysia, ran a business that involved providing services to U.S. Navy ships. He bribed naval officers with money, favors, and sexual services in exchange for overlooking inflated bills and awarding him multimillion-dollar contracts. This ensured that U.S. Navy ships docked at ports he controlled, according to federal indictments.
In the aftermath of the scandal, several Navy officials, including Capt. David Lausman, were convicted of bribery and corruption. However, some of these convictions were vacated after a judge found prosecutorial misconduct in the case, and the defendants were allowed to plead guilty to lesser charges.
Throughout the investigation, Francis claimed to have close ties with the U.S. Navy, even claiming he helped protect the fleet after the September 11 attacks. In 2021, he told The Wall Street Journal that he had deep involvement with Navy operations and had secretly assisted in missions to fight al-Qaeda affiliates. He also made disturbing claims about recording explicit videos involving Navy officers and said he had been courted by Russian and Chinese spies, presenting serious national-security risks.
Francis also boasted about owning a fleet of more than 180 boats, including a warship, the Braveheart, which he said he used to help safeguard the U.S. Navy. The full scale of his network and corruption continues to shock authorities and raises questions about the depth of his influence within the U.S. military.
The investigation remains ongoing, and additional details are expected to emerge as more Navy officials potentially face charges related to this scandal.