U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Robert Gilbeau is seen in an undated official picture from the U.S. Navy. Gilbeau will plead guilty June 9, 2016 to lying to federal investigators, the Washington Post reported. US Navy/Handout via Reuters
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. Navy rear admiral is set to plead guilty on Thursday to a charge of lying to federal investigators, which would make him the highest-ranking officer to be convicted in the expanding "Fat Leonard" bribery case, prosecutors said.
Robert Gilbeau, a special assistant to the chief of the Navy Supply Corps, was scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in San Diego late Thursday afternoon, court records showed.
Kelly Thornton, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California, said in an email on Thursday that Gilbeau was set to plead guilty to one count of providing false information.
A guilty plea by Gilbeau would bring to 14 the number of people charged in the Singapore-based case, including former Glenn Defense Marine Asia Chief Executive Leonard Francis, a Malaysian businessman known as "Fat Leonard." He pleaded guilty last year to bribery charges. Nine of the 13 previously charged have pleaded guilty.
The court calendar item, provided by prosecutors, said that Gilbeau was scheduled for a so-called change of plea hearing regarding a single count of providing false information to investigators.
Gilbeau's attorney was not immediately available for comment, his office said.
The court calendar item forwarded by Thornton indicated that Gilbeau's plea would be in connection with a single count of providing false information to investigators.
Three current and former U.S. Navy officers were charged with participating in the scheme on May 27, the U.S. Justice Department said.
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