Former CIA executive pleads guilty to defrauding government
Prosecutors said Kyle Dustin Foggo, along with convicted Congressman Randy 'Duke' Cunningham, helped steer an estimated $100 million in contracts to San Diego-area firms run by Foggo's old roommate.
Lenny Ignelzi, Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The former No. 3 official at the CIA pleaded guilty Monday to defrauding the government, closing an investigation that linked the nation's preeminent spy service to the corruption scandal involving former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham.
In admitting that he abused his rank to steer lucrative contracts to cronies, Kyle Dustin "Dusty" Foggo, the agency's onetime executive director, became one of the highest-ranking officials in CIA history to be convicted of criminal charges.
But the deal also involved major concessions from prosecutors, who allowed Foggo to admit guilt to a single fraud charge, wiping out 27 additional counts that included money laundering and conspiracy. Foggo, 53, faces up to 20 years in custody and a $250,000 fine, but prosecutors indicated that they would recommend he serve no more than 37 months.
Mark MacDougall, an attorney for Foggo, said his client "made the difficult decision to bring this case to a close in the best interest of his family and to get on with the rest of his life."
The revelations of Foggo's crimes surfaced two years ago during one of the most tumultuous periods in recent agency history, and added to the pressure on the Bush administration to remove Porter J. Goss as CIA director in 2006.
Foggo, who served as a procurement officer in Germany before being named to manage most of the agency's day-to-day operations, was accused of directing millions of dollars in business to a longtime friend, Brent Wilkes, who is serving a 12-year sentence after being convicted of bribing Cunningham.
Prosecutors said Foggo and Cunningham helped steer an estimated $100 million in contracts to Wilkes' firms. Cunningham, a Republican from Rancho Santa Fe, is serving eight years in prison after pleading guilty in 2005 to taking $2.4 million in bribes from defense contractors and evading more than $1 million in taxes.
"Throughout the years-long scheme, Foggo had a standing offer for a high-level, high-paying position with his best friend Brent Wilkes," prosecutors in San Diego and Alexandria, Va., said in a statement.
Foggo admitted to allowing Wilkes to conceal their close relationship by using shell companies and false cover stories to obscure Wilkes' interest in the CIA contracts, they said. In one instance, Foggo was accused of helping Wilkes win a $3-million contract to supply bottled water to CIA personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan.
