Army contracting officer in Korea indicted By Hil Anderson
From the National Desk
Published 7/3/2002 8:08 PM
LOS ANGELES, July 3 (UPI) -- An Army officer whose job was to award of millions of dollars worth of government contracts on military bases in South Korea was indicted Wednesday on charges that he, his wife, and three others raked in hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from two Korean companies.
A federal grand jury in Santa Ana charged Colonel Richard James Moran, 56, with accepting payoffs in exchange for his influence as head of the Army Contracting Command Korea (CCK) in the awarding of lucrative construction and security services contracts to the Korean businesses.
"The Army entrusted Richard Moran to act on its behalf and in the best interests of the U.S. Government," said Michael Kochmanski, head of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division's Los Angeles office. "Instead, he acted in his own self-interest by accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from government contractors."
Investigators who searched Moran's home on the Yongsan Army Base in January discovered $700,000 in cash, including $400,000 allegedly stashed under the covers in the couple's bed, the U.S. Attorney's office said in a statement.
A U.S. attorney spokesman explained to United Press International why the group of co-conspirators was being charged in Los Angeles: "If a crime in violation of federal law takes place outside the territory of the United States, it can theoretically be prosecuted anywhere in the United States. There is a provision of the law that states, basically, that it will be prosecuted where the defendant is first brought into the country."
Moran was under arrest Wednesday and was being brought back to California to face charges, as were his wife, Gina Cha Moran, 44, and Ronald A. Parrish, 49, who was the head of the Contract Support Division of the CCK.
Col. Moran, Parrish and Indiana businessman Richard Lee Carlisle, 31, allegedly provided the details of sealed bids submitted by competitors to the two companies accused of paying the cash bribes.
Mrs. Moran was charged with conspiracy for certain acts and also obstructing justice by attempting to hide the $400,000 found in her bed after agents had completed their search of the bedroom. The cash had originally been stashed in the cushions of the living room sofa.
If convicted, the Morans could each face around 100 years in prison.
"The investigation into Moran's activities began when the Army detected irregularities in certain contracts in Korea," the U.S. Attorney's office said. "Army Criminal Investigation Command conducted a vigorous criminal investigation into these irregularities and brought the results to the attention of the Department of Justice. The FBI and IRS joined the inquiry that resulted in today's indictment."
Three of the construction contracts listed in the 11-count indictment were awarded to Aulson and Sky Construction Company, Ltd. (A&S) of Korea. While A&S did not submit the low bids, they allegedly won the contracts, which totaled $25 million, after paying off Moran; Mrs. Moran allegedly collected most of the payoffs.
The fourth contract was a $14 million portion of an overall $112 million deal awarded to IBS Industries Co. to provide civilian security guards at various U.S. military bases.
Moran, his wife and defendant Joseph Kang Hur, a 57-year-old Anaheim Hills, Calif. businessman, were all charged with conspiracy based on the alleged solicitation of bribes in relation to the A&S and IBS contracts. Additionally, Moran is charged with four counts of bribery.
Hur was described as a "consultant" for Moran who in reality acted as a bagman who, along with Mrs. Moran, surreptitiously collected the payoffs.
