FBI Agent Charged with Aiding Armenian Mob
US authorities have arrested a former agent with the FBI for
accepting more than US$200,000 in bribes and gifts from the Armenian mafia in
exchange for sensitive legal information.
Officials with the FBI and the Justice Department’s Office
of the Inspector General took Babak Broumand into custody last Friday near his
home in Lafayette, California.
Before retiring in 2019, Broumand had reportedly worked for
the FBI for more than 20 years, most recently as an agent at the Bureau’s San
Francisco field office, where he oversaw matters of national security and the
development of confidential sources.
Prosecutors allege that between early 2015 and 2017, the
former agent accepted monthly bribery payments of US$10,000 from a lawyer with
links to an organised crime syndicate in Armenia. The lawyer remains
unidentified, and authorities say he is cooperating with their investigation.
These payments, which were reportedly also accompanied by
gifts including hotel stays, motorcycles and escort services, were made in
exchange for Broumand running the names of 10-20 of the lawyer’s associates
through the FBI’s databases, specifically to determine the status of any
investigations into their activities.
One of the names queried by Broumand was that of Levon
Termendzhyan, also known as Lev Aslan Dermen, who was convicted by a federal
court last month for his role in a biodiesel tax-fraud scheme thought to have
been worth more than $1 billion.
Nicola Hanna, US Attorney for the Central District of
California, said in a statement that by providing sensitive information to
criminal actors, Broumand had “tarnished the badge that was the symbol of his
oath to uphold the law."
“Our nation is based on the premise that public officials -
especially federal law enforcement officials, place the country and her people
above their own self-interest. This former FBI agent stands accused of
violating this sacred trust by providing help to criminals simply to fund his
lavish lifestyle,” she added.
If convicted, Broumand faces a maximum sentence of five
years in federal prison.
Comments
Post a Comment