Retired four-star naval admiral was sentenced to 6 years in prison for bribery

WASHINGTON (AP) — A retired four-star U.S. Admiral was sentenced to six years in prison Tuesday after he agreed to swap his military contract for profitable post-work for his conviction of corruption charges.

Retired Robert P. Burke, once an official in the second-highest uniform of the Navy, commanded his troops in Europe and Africa while bribing the plot with two business executives, according to federal prosecutors.

After the May trial, the jury found Burke on four counts, including conspiracy and acceptance of bribery. The jury and trial ended last Thursday with two co-defendants in Burke – the next Jump Coos Yongchul “Charlie” Kim and Meghan Messenger.

Burke, 63, refused to face the court with U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden in Washington, D.C., sentenced him to sentence him to sentence him to a sentence.

“It is known that this is a blatant violation of the law,” the judge told him. “But you did it anyway.”

The judge told Burke that he betrayed the public’s trust and sworn in.

“It’s a sad day and a sad chapter for the U.S. Navy,” McFadden said.

Prosecutors sentenced Burke to 10 years in prison, saying he abused his strong stance to enrich himself at the cost of the navy.

“Burke’s actions and public trust in the leader created a blatant and serious attitude,” the prosecutor wrote. “His crimes demand responsibility. His crimes demand punishment. ”

Burke’s lawyers said they would appeal his beliefs. They cite his “extraordinary public service throughout his life” and demand that the judge exempt Burke from his sentence.

“This is not a case of a professional criminal,” they wrote. “At the end of life as defined by honor, courage and commitment, it is a case of a single, tragic and abnormal chapter.”

Prosecutors said King and Messenger agreed to pay Burke a $500,000 salary, and stock options are expected to be worth millions of dollars. In exchange, Burke ordered his employees to sign a contract with the next jump and promote the company’s products to other senior naval commanders, they said.

Burke’s lawyers said an experienced military commander would have found a higher job in the private sector.

“He was not driven by greed, but believed in the company’s mission and products,” they wrote.

In 2018, next step is multimillion-dollar naval contracts to provide labor training to offices under Burke’s command. But the Navy terminated the “bad received” pilot program about a year later, prosecutors said.

In 2021, Burke privately met with Kim and Messenger to discuss another contract. Prosecutors said Kim and Messenger proposed a contract that “basically provided the process that failed two years ago.” Prosecutors said Burke ordered subordinates a few months later to ensure the next step is to have contracts to train naval personnel from Italy and Spain.

“The fact is that Burke knew that such training was a waste of time and money, not suitable for his orders, let alone the entire Navy,” the prosecutor wrote.

Burke later retired from the Navy and joined the next jump in October 2022.

Reed Brodsky, one of Messenger’s lawyers, said there was no connection between the job offer and the contract. Brodsky argued at the trial that Burke repeatedly lied to Messenger and Kim to discuss the contracting process.

Brodsky told the jurors: “They rely on the admiral. The admiral is the expert.

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