USAID Official & Top Executives Plead GUILTY In Massive Fraud Scheme

Boom.

A USAID official and three corporate executives have just plead guilty in connection with a massive bribery and fraud scheme related to over a dozen contracts worth over $550 million in taxpayer money.

I thought Democrats said there was no fraud at USAID.

So strange.

Here are the details:

BREAKING: USAID official and 3 company executives plead guilty in fraud and bribery scheme involving at least 14 contracts worth over $550 million

USAID Official Roderick Watson took bribes, was showered with lavish gifts— including cash, laptops, thousands of dollars in tickets… pic.twitter.com/jBpXTIHxg9

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) June 13, 2025

BREAKING: USAID official and 3 company executives plead guilty in fraud and bribery scheme involving at least 14 contracts worth over $550 million

USAID Official Roderick Watson took bribes, was showered with lavish gifts— including cash, laptops, thousands of dollars in tickets to a suite at an NBA game, a country club wedding, downpayments on two residential mortgages, cell phones, and jobs for relatives.

In exchange for the bribe payments, Watson influenced the award of contracts by manipulating the procurement process at USAID.

Watson faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.

Imagine how much more fraud there is…

One of the men who plead guilty is the head of a consulting group that received multiple contracts underneath the Biden admin to work in Ukraine:

🔥A government contracting officer for USAID and three owners and presidents of companies have pleaded guilty for their roles in a bribery scheme involving at least 14 prime contracts worth over $550 million in U.S. taxpayer dollars.

Roderick Watson, 57, of Woodstock, Maryland,… https://t.co/kvfAcvGj76 pic.twitter.com/1iIJKNES9G

— Kimberly “Kim” Wexler MA JD (@KimWexlerMAJD) June 13, 2025

A government contracting officer for USAID and three owners and presidents of companies have pleaded guilty for their roles in a bribery scheme involving at least 14 prime contracts worth over $550 million in U.S. taxpayer dollars.

ADVERTISEMENT

Roderick Watson, 57, of Woodstock, Maryland, who worked as a USAID contracting officer, pleaded guilty to bribery of a public official.

One government contractor, Walter Barnes, is the founder of PM Consulting Group, which now goes by the name Vistant. Vistant received numerous contracts to work in Ukraine under the Biden administration—including to be a “technical advisor” for “human rights.”

A DOJ press release detailed the crime:

Four men, including a government contracting officer for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and three owners and presidents of companies, have pleaded guilty for their roles in a decade-long bribery scheme involving at least 14 prime contracts worth over $550 million in U.S. taxpayer dollars.

• Roderick Watson, 57, of Woodstock, Maryland, who worked as a USAID contracting officer, pleaded guilty to bribery of a public official;
• Walter Barnes, 46, of Potomac, Maryland, who was the owner and president of PM Consulting Group LLC doing business as Vistant (Vistant), a certified small business under the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) 8(a) contracting program, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery of a public official and securities fraud;
• Darryl Britt, 64, of Myakka City, Florida, who was the owner and president of Apprio, Inc. (Apprio), a certified small business under the SBA 8(a) contracting program, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery of a public official; and
• Paul Young, 62, of Columbia, Maryland, who was the president of a subcontractor to Vistant and Apprio, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery of a public official.

In addition, Apprio and Vistant, both of which contracted with USAID, have agreed to admit criminal liability and enter into three-year deferred prosecution agreements (DPAs) in connection with criminal informations filed today in the District of Maryland. As part of these resolutions, both Apprio and Vistant admitted to engaging in a conspiracy to commit bribery of a public official and securities fraud. The DPAs entered into with Apprio and Vistant require each company to, among other obligations, provide ongoing cooperation with and disclosures to the Justice Department, implement a compliance and ethics program, and report to Justice Department regarding remediation and implementation of these compliance measures.

“The defendants sought to enrich themselves at the expense of American taxpayers through bribery and fraud,” said Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Their scheme violated the public trust by corrupting the federal government’s procurement process. Anybody who cares about good and effective government should be concerned about the waste, fraud, and abuse in government agencies, including USAID. Those who engage in bribery schemes to exploit the U.S. Small Business Administration’s vital economic programs for small businesses — whether individuals or corporations acting through them — will be held to account.”

Keep in mind that this is just one example of USAID fraud uncovered by the DOJ. Now, recall how desperate Democrats were to protect USAID.

As President Trump and Elon Musk have noted, the corruption at that agency is rampant and deep.

Imagine how many other USAID officials and contractors have been involved with schemes to defraud the American taxpayer.

I have a feeling this is just the beginning of prosecutions to come…

9/ This is just the beginning.

✅ $550M USAID fraud exposed
✅ Four guilty pleas
✅ Two companies admitting criminal liability
✅ USAID collapsing
✅ $9.4B in cuts already passed the House

🔁 RT if you want every corrupt globalist held accountable.

Let’s finish the job. 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/BMvgLrpxJu

— Rod D. Martin (@RodDMartin) June 13, 2025