Ex-Louis Berger executive gets probation for

'extraordinary cooperation' in bribery case

Jurisdiction : - North America /USA

8 Jul 16 | 22:24 GMT

Author: Mark Bocchetti

IN BRIEF
A New Jersey federal judge on Friday recognized the “extraordinary
cooperation” that helped secure the conviction of the CEO of government
contractor Louis Berger Group, sentencing an ex-overseas manager to
probation on two counts of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

A New Jersey federal judge on Friday recognized the “extraordinary

cooperation” that helped secure the conviction of the CEO of government
contractor Louis Berger Group, sentencing an ex-overseas manager to probation
on two counts of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

www.mlex.com US District Judge Mary L. Cooper followed the lead of prosecutors who praised
MLex customer
services the role that 62-year-old Richard Hirsch played in the investigation of former
customerservices@mlex.com CEO Derish Wolff, who pleaded guilty to fraud in December 2014 for overbilling
the government on USAID contracts.
MLex London
141 Moorgate
London EC2M 6TX “Mr. Hirsch has been an exceptional cooperator by almost any standard,” said
United Kingdom prosecutor John Borchert. “His cooperation in this case was a real game
MLex Brussels changer.”
Rue de la Loi 67
1040 Brussels
Borchert said that Hirsch was willing to assist the FBI in investigating Berger
Belgium
from the outset, even before he had reached an agreement with prosecutors on
MLex Washington how his own culpability would be treated. His cooperation was “extraordinary”
1776 I (Eye) St. NW
Suite 260 in that Hirsch provided detailed, in-depth testimony that made sense of the
20006 Washington,D.C. document trail, he said.
USA

MLex New York Hirsch explained precisely how various transactions disguised bribes, he
535 Fifth Avenue, 4th revealed specifics on which public officials in Indonesia and Vietnam had been
Floor paid, and he could recall the specifics of meetings with precision, Borchert said.
10017 New York
USA
Hirsch, who had managed Berger contracts for the US government and other
MLex San Francisco
clients from a supervisory posting in the Philippines, even revealed the
32 7th Street
CA 94103 existence of a bank account used by a foreign public official that had been
USA unknown to investigators.
MLex Hong Kong
Level 43 - AIA Tower This cooperation had been especially useful because the company itself had
183 Electric Road been far less cooperative, resisting culpability for apparent bribery despite
North Point
Hong Kong having completed its own internal investigation, Borchert said. Hirsch provided

Forwarded on 15/07/2016 by Mark Bocchetti (Mlex Editorial).

This content is intended only for the person to whom it is addressed.
All rights reserved on subscriber original content. Copyright MLex 2016.
 chapter and verse on how he managed bribes on the company’s behalf that
eventually led to an admission of guilt by Louis Berger to FCPA violations.

And the prosecutor gave Hirsch credit — as he did on Thursday during the
sentencing of fellow Berger manager James McClung — for evidence that helped
the government win a motion to submit evidence of foreign bribery against
Wolff, breaking a stalemate in Wolff's prosecution on fraud charges.

The prosecutor signaled the greater value of Hirsch's testimony when he

recommended to the judge a downward reduction in sentencing, which reduced
the range for incarceration from 57-71 months to 0-6 months. In the McClung
sentencing on Thursday, prosecutors recommended a less dramatic reduction,
with Cooper sentencing McClung to a year and a day.

Hirsch's lawyer, William Sullivan, evoked the “irony” of Hirsch's career as a

Berger manager in describing some of the assistance projects that he had
supervised for USAID. Hirsch had spent his career working diligently to further
US foreign policy interests by implementing USAID projects, only to be tripped
up by bribery from which he didn’t profit, the lawyer said.
www.mlex.com
MLex customer
services Hirsch had been largely responsible for implementing a highly successful project
customerservices@mlex.com to reintegrate Islamic insurgents in the Philippines, called Growth with Equity in
Mindanao, Sullivan said. He referred to numerous letters in the court file
MLex London
141 Moorgate attesting to the lasting success of the program, including letters from former
London EC2M 6TX high-ranking USG officials and former insurgent leaders.
United Kingdom

MLex Brussels “I wish there were words to tell you the depth off my remorse,” Hirsch said in a
Rue de la Loi 67 brief statement.
1040 Brussels
Belgium
Cooper, noting that Hirsch's regret appeared to be “heartfelt,” sentenced the
MLex Washington Philippines resident to two years of probation without home arrest or travel
1776 I (Eye) St. NW
Suite 260 restrictions. She also fined him $10,000.
20006 Washington,D.C.
USA Department of Justice spokesman Peter Carr confirmed that Hirsch’s sentencing
MLex New York concludes the foreign bribery investigation of Louis Berger.
535 Fifth Avenue, 4th
Floor
10017 New York
USA

MLex San Francisco

32 7th Street
CA 94103
USA

MLex Hong Kong

Level 43 - AIA Tower
183 Electric Road
North Point
Hong Kong

Forwarded on 15/07/2016 by Mark Bocchetti (Mlex Editorial).

This content is intended only for the person to whom it is addressed.
All rights reserved on subscriber original content. Copyright MLex 2016.