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Former Schofield range operations manager pleads guilty to conspiracy, accepting bribes

STAR-ADVERTISER / JAN. 2014

A Blackhawk helicopter stood ready to take off at dusk from Schofield Barracks. A former U.S. Army civilian employee who was based at Schofield Barracks pled guilty today in federal court in Tennessee to conspiring to accept bribes and disclose sensitive Army procurement information.

A former U.S. Army civilian employee who was based at Schofield Barracks pled guilty today in federal court in Tennessee to conspiring to accept bribes and disclose sensitive Army procurement information.

Franklin Raby, 67, of Greeneville, Tenn., pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Ronnie Greer of the Eastern District of Tennessee to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery and disclose sensitive Army procurement information while he served as a range operations manager at Schofield, federal officials announced today.

Raby is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 5.

According to his plea agreement, from March 2015 through May 2018, Raby accepted tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of bribes—including an antique automobile — from an employee of a federal contractor that sought and received business from the Army, according to today’s announcement.

In return, Raby provided the contractor with “sensitive, internal U.S. Department of Defense procurement information, and otherwise used his position to benefit the contractor in securing U.S. Army contracts,” according to the announcement made by Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Kenji M. Price of the District of Hawaii, Special Agent in Charge Ray Park of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, Special Agent in Charge Bryan Denny of the U.S. Defense Criminal Investigative Service and Special Agent in Charge Sean Kaul of the FBI’s Honolulu Field Office made the announcement.

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