KUALA LUMPUR – At least three lawyers acting for former military contractor Leonard Glenn Francis, who was caught in Venezuela on Tuesday after escaping house arrest in the United States, now intend to withdraw themselves from representing him in court.
This comes as the Malaysian, who is known by the nickname ‘Fat Leonard’, is currently being readied for extradition to the US. According to Interpol, he is believed to have been planning to flee to Russia.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Devin Burstein, a lawyer for Francis, saying yesterday that he and two other lawyers from his law firm plan to withdraw as Francis’ legal counsel at an upcoming hearing.
There are also three other lawyers listed as his representation in court records, WSJ reported. However, the daily said that the other lawyers did not immediately return a request for comment.
Leonard, who was raised in Penang, was detained on an Interpol red notice at Simon Bolivar International Airport near Caracas, the capital of Venezuela.
CBS News had earlier quoted US Marshals Service as saying that he was boarding a flight to Cuba when he was nabbed.
However, according to the latest report by WSJ which cited Interpol, Francis is understood to have been planning to fly to Russia.
It quoted Carlos Gárate Rondón, the director-general of Interpol in Venezuela, as saying that Francis was detained at the airport, which is in Maiquetía, some 21km from downtown Caracas.
Rondón said that Francis was on his way to Russia, having already made stops in Mexico and Cuba.
The daily also quoted Omar Castillo, a supervisory deputy US Marshal, as saying that officials believe Francis had flown without using an alias. He is set to be flown to the US soon.
The US Marshals believed Francis had escaped to Mexico after managing to flee from his house in San Diego near the border on September 4.
On September 6, it was reported that Francis was on the run, just three weeks before he was supposed to begin his potentially up to 25-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to being involved in what is said to be the US Navy’s worst corruption scandal.
News that Francis had supposedly made his way to Venezuela broke out when investigative journalists and Project Brazen co-founders Tom Wright and Bradley Hope asserted that they had “information” on Francis being in the Latin American country.
Over 30 navy officers and contractors have either been convicted or pleaded guilty to charges related to Francis’ services.
One of the five US Navy officers embroiled in the scandal – former rear admiral Bruce Loveless – was reported on September 16 to be off the hook after San Diego federal prosecutors dismissed his charges.
Four other officers – former commander Mario Herrera and former captains David Newland, James Dolan and David Lausman – were convicted of conspiracy, bribery and other charges.
Besides accusations of being feted with expensive meals, luxury hotel rooms and prostitutes that were paid for by Francis, prosecutors also claimed that the defendants had accepted bribes to provide Francis with classified information.
They were also accused of abusing their navy positions to ensure ships berthing at ports were serviced by Francis’ Singapore-based company, Glenn Defence Marine Asia.
The company allegedly overcharged the US Navy by more than US$35 million (RM147 million). – The Vibes, September 23, 2022
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