IAP Worldwide Services, Inc. (“IAP”) was a Delaware corporation headquartered in Cape Canaveral, Florida, that provided facilities management, contingency operations, and professional and technical services in contracting capacities to the U.S. military and civilian agencies. IAP operated in the United States and in various foreign countries, including Kuwait and Iraq. Between in or about August 2005 and in or about March 2007, James Michael Rama was IAP’s Vice President of Special Projects and Programs. After March 2007, Rama worked as a consultant for IAP.
In 2004, Kuwait’s Ministry of the Interior (MOI) initiated the Kuwait Security Program (KSP), a project that was intended to provide nationwide surveillance capabilities for several Kuwaiti government agencies primarily through the use of closed-circuit television. The project was divided into two phases: a planning and feasibility period called “Phase I” and an installation period called “Phase II.” The MOI was responsible for overseeing the KSP, including selecting contractors to facilitate its implementation. Revenues from the Phase II contract were expected to be substantially greater than from Phase I. IAP and Rama schemed to ensure that IAP worked as the consultant for Phase I so that it could tailor the requirements for the Phase II contracts to IAP’s strengths, which would give the company an advantage in the Phase II bidding. To that end, both IAP and Rama admitted that in February 2006, executives and senior employees of IAP, including Rama, set up a shell company called “Ramaco” to bid on Phase I, in part to conceal IAP’s role in crafting the Phase II requirements and its conflict of interest in connection with securing the Phase II contract.
Ultimately, Ramaco secured the Phase I contract for approximately $4 million. Rama and IAP agreed that half of that amount would be diverted to a consultant who would pay bribes to Kuwaiti government officials to assist IAP in obtaining and retaining the Phase I contract and to obtain the Phase II contract. IAP and Rama admitted that they disguised the payments by transferring funds Ramaco received to an IAP bank account and then to the consultant through a series of accounts and intermediaries. Between September 2006 and March 2008, IAP and its co-conspirators paid the consultant approximately $1,783,688 understanding that some or all of the funds would be used to bribe Kuwaiti government officials.
On June 16, 2015, the Department of Justice entered into a Non-Prosecution Agreement with IAP, based in part on IAP's cooperation and remedial actions undertaken by the company during the course of the investigation. The NPA requires IAP to pay a $7.1 million penalty and to assume ongoing compliance and reporting obligations.
On the same day, Rama pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA. On October 15, 2015, Rama was sentenced to 120 days in prison, plus two years of supervised release. He was given a $100 special assessent but no fine. In its sentencing memorandum, the government noted Rama's financial hardships, and a Wall Street Journal article released around the time of sentencing indicated that Rama had filed for bankruptcy.
