1 Navy officer sentenced, 1 pleads guilty in bribery case

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A retired U.S. Navy captain has pleaded guilty, while another former Navy officer was sentenced to 17 months in prison in a wide-spanning Navy bribery scandal involving a Malaysian defense contractor.

Fifty-two-year-old Jeffrey Breslau, of Georgia, pleaded guilty in federal court in San Diego on Thursday to a criminal conflict of interest charge. So far 33 people have been charged in the case.

Leonard Francis, nicknamed “Fat Leonard,” paid Breslau to ghostwrite his emails. Prosecutors say Francis overbilled the US Navy by more than $35 million for services for ships.

Also Thursday, retired Master Chief Ricarte Icmat David, of the Philippines, was sentenced to 17 months. Prosecutors say the 62-year-old allowed Francis to inflate invoices for services never rendered.

Their defense lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment.