Osama Esam Saleem Ayesh, Theft of Public Money, Virginia 2012

A former employee of the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad was sentenced to 42 months in prison for stealing nearly $250,000 intended for the payment of shipping and customs services for the embassy.

Osama Esam Saleem Ayesh, 36, was also ordered to pay $243,416 in restitution and a $5,000 fine, as well as to serve three years of supervised release following his prison term.

A federal jury convicted Ayesh on two counts of theft of public money and one count of engaging in acts affecting a personal financial interest.

Ayesh was arrested at Dulles International Airport on August 16, 2010, and indicted on October 15, 2010, on the charges for which he was convicted.

Ayesh, a resident of Jordan, was hired by the State Department as a shipping and customs supervisor at the embassy in Baghdad, who oversaw the shipments of personal property of embassy officials and personnel in Iraq.

His duties required that he maintain close contact with local Iraqi companies and vendors with expertise in clearing goods through Iraqi customs. As a State Department employee, Ayesh was aware that he would be subject to the conflict of interest laws of the United States that prohibit government employees from using their position for personal profit.

Court records and evidence at trial showed that Ayesh was personally involved in establishing and operating blanket purchase agreements for the provision of customs clearance and delivery services to the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/former-employee-us-embassy-baghdad-sentenced-42-months-prison-stealing-nearly-250000