Brodie S. Thomson, a former Virginia-based Federal contracting executive, last week admitted guilt for his actions in a $4.1 million fraud scheme that centered on soliciting bribes and receiving financial kickbacks in connection with prime government contracts and subcontracts awarded to a firm for which he served as senior vice president.
According to documents filed June 22 with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division in Case No. 1:20-CR-67 (AJT), Thomson stipulated and agreed to the fraud charges brought by Federal prosecutors, and agreed that “at trial, the United States would have proven” the facts in the case “beyond a reasonable doubt with admissible and credible evidence.”
The court papers in which Thomson admitted guilt do not identify by name the Arlington, Va.-based company that he worked for, but say it provided “human capital services” to Federal agencies including the military. The papers also do not identify by name other companies that were connected to Thomson’s contracting activities, or that were harmed by the fraud scheme which spanned 2010 to 2015.
The documents do describe, however, several government contracts that were involved in Thomson’s scheme.
They include: 1) a Defense Contract Management Agency contract for the benefit of the U.S. Army; 2) a contract to provide support services for the Army’s Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention program; 3) a Defense Department Mission and Installation Contracting Command contract to supply personnel to coordinate and render services to wounded, ill, or injured military services members; and 4) a Marine Corps contract to provide its Wounded Warrior Regiment with recovery care coordinators for wounded veterans.
The government alleged, and Thomson admitted to, “soliciting and accepting kickbacks and bribes” from a second company in return for Thomson providing “favorable treatment” to the second company with prime government contracts and subcontracts awarded to Thomson’s employer. In doing so, Thomson admitted to having engaged “in a scheme and artifice to defraud” by depriving his employer “of the intangible right of honest services.” Thomson did not disclose to his employer that he received payments from the second company for his personal use, the court papers say.
In total, Thomson “unjustly enriched” himself by soliciting and accepting more than $4.1 million from the second company in exchange for influencing his employer to give the second company favorable treatment, the court papers say. The kickback payments – at least 15 in number – were masked by “sham” consulting and sales agreements, among other means.
Those sham agreements included deals for the sales of several business plans involving after-market car horns and advisory services, Christmas tree broker and advisory services, and mobile towing and storage and advisory services. The face value of those sham agreements totaled $4.2 million, according to court papers.
Finally, the court papers say that Thomson did not attempt to bribe any public officials in connection with his actions, or try to influence any public official to commit fraud against the United States.
