Washington [US], October 19 (ANI/Sputnik): A US federal court charged the CEO of a major defence contractor, Multinational Logistics Services, for allegedly participating in a bribery scheme to win defence contracts worth some USD 1.3 billion over the last decade, the Department of Justice said in a press release.

"The chief executive officer (CEO) of Multinational Logistics Services (MLS), a large ship husbanding company that has received over USD 1 billion in US Navy contracts since 2010, appeared in the United States today to face a criminal charge for his alleged participation in a bribery scheme," the release said on Monday.

Also Read | UK to Impose Visa Penalties to Speed Up Deportations of Illegal Migrants.

Frank Rafaraci, 68, a US citizen who was residing overseas, has been the CEO of MLS since 2005, the release said.

Since about 2010, Rafaraci allegedly was involved in a scheme to bribe US Navy officials, defraud the US Navy using falsely inflated invoices, and launder the proceeds of the scheme through shell companies he set up in the United Arab Emirates in order to benefit MLS, the release said.

Also Read | COVID-19 Vaccine Update: China's Inhalable Ad5-nCoV Vaccine May Boost Antibodies Upto 300-Fold, Claims Report.

If convicted, Rafaraci faces up to 15 years in prison, the release said. (ANI/Sputnik)

(The above story is verified and authored by ANI staff, ANI is South Asia's leading multimedia news agency with over 100 bureaus in India, South Asia and across the globe. ANI brings the latest news on Politics and Current Affairs in India & around the World, Sports, Health, Fitness, Entertainment, & News. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)