Curtis Whiteford, Bribery Conspiracy, New Jersey 2007

Curtis Whiteford, 53, Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Role in Bribery Conspiracy in Al-Hillah, Iraq

A former U.S. Army officer has been sentenced to five years in prison for his participation in a bribery conspiracy in Al-Hillah, Iraq. Curtis Whiteford, a former colonel in the U.S. Army Reserves, was also ordered to pay $16,200 in restitution and to serve two years of supervised release following his prison term.

Whiteford was convicted of conspiracy to commit bribery and the interstate transport of stolen property. He was the second-most senior official and highest ranking military officer at the Coalition Provisional Authority-South Central Region (CPA-SC) in Al-Hillah.

According to testimony at trial, Whiteford conspired with at least three others—Robert Stein, Philip H. Bloom, and Bruce D. Hopfengardner—to rig the bids on contracts being awarded by the CPA-SC. The scheme resulted in more than 20 contracts being awarded to Bloom, who received approximately $8 million in rigged contracts.

In return, Bloom provided Whiteford, as well as other co-conspirators, with more than $1 million in cash, SUVs, sports cars, a motorcycle, jewelry, computers, business class airline tickets, liquor, and promise of future employment with Bloom and other items of value.

Whiteford’s sentencing comes after a 25-count indictment was unsealed in February 2007, charging him and several others with various crimes related to the scheme. His co-conspirators include former U.S. Army Lt. Col. Debra M. Harrison, former U.S. Army Reserves Lt. Col. Michael Wheeler, and civilians William Driver and Seymour Morris Jr.

The cases are being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys John P. Pearson and Kevin Driscoll of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section, as well as Trial Attorney Ann C. Brickley. The cases are being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

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