(UnitedHeadlines.com) – On May 31, retired United States Navy four-star Admiral Robert Burke, 62, was indicted on bribery charges by the Department of Justice.
According to the indictment, Burke, a former vice chief of naval operations, allegedly helped a technology company, NextJump, secure a contract with the government to provide a contingent of Navy forces in Italy and Spain with training in exchange for a position at the company after he retired from the Navy. He allegedly lied to Navy officials about receiving an offer of employment at NextJump before he arranged the contract for them. Burke also allegedly attempted to convince another “senior Navy Admiral” to award the company another contract.
He is facing charges of bribery, conspiracy to commit bribery, performing acts affecting a personal financial interest, and concealing material facts from the United States. If convicted, he faces a maximum prison sentence of 30 years. The co-CEOs of NextJump, Meghan Messenger and Yongchul “Charlie” Kim, are also facing charges of bribery and conspiracy to commit bribery for their alleged involvement in the scheme. Each faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years if convicted.
Prosecutors allege Burke used his influence to help NextJump secure a Navy contract worth what prosecutors say is an estimation from Kim of “triple digit millions.”
Burke’s attorney, Timothy Parlatore, contests the prosecutors’ allegations, stating, “We expect he will be found not guilty.”
Rear Adm. Ryan Perry said the Navy “has fully cooperated with this investigation” and takes the charges “very seriously.”
During his four-decades-long career in the Navy, Burke served as the commander of Allied Joint Force Command in Italy and the deputy commander of the Navy’s 6th Fleet. A post on NextJump’s Twitter account shows that following his 2022 retirement from the Navy, Burke accepted a senior position with the company with an annual salary of $500,000 and a “grant of 100,000 stock options.”
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