An Indian businessman pleaded guilty on Thursday to bribing a UN purchasing official with two luxury apartments in return for being given more than $50 million in the world body's contracts.
Nishan Kohli pleaded guilty in Manhattan federal court to one count of bribery of an official of an organisation receiving more than $10,000 in federal funds, US Attorney Michael Garcia said in a statement. Kohli, an Indian, faces a maximum of 10 years in prison, Garcia said.
Kohli is alleged to have sold Sanjay Bahel, the head of the UN commodity procurement wing from 1998 to 2003, two luxury condominium units just blocks from the United Nations' Manhattan compound at severely cut prices.
Kohli also gave Bahel a series of cash payments and a cell phone so the two could "communicate in secret," Garcia said.
The apartments and gifts were a return gift for Bahel granting Kohli, the managing partner of Thunderbird Industries, LLC, and an agent for Indian government-owned Telecommunications Consultants India Ltd, "a line of communication and source for information within the UN that exceeded what UN vendors could typically expect to receive," Garcia said.
Bahel, a senior official of the Indian Defense Auditing Services, who was on deputation to the United Nations, and Kohli were arrested last month. He was suspended by the world body in August on charges that he bent rules to help TCIL get contracts worth millions of dollar.
The investigation against Bahel was part of the inquiry set off by the Volcker Committee report in the Iraqi oil-for-food programme, which had cast doubts on contacts given by peacekeeping department of the United Nations.
If convicted, they could be sentenced up to ten in years in prison and the government is also seeking forfeiture of Bahel's interests in the apartment in midtown Manhattan which, the prosecutors allege, was bought by Kohli in 2003 and sold to Bahel at a very low price in 2005.
Bahel and family are alleged to have lived in that apartment paying little or no rent.
The arrests followed investigations carried out independently by US investigators following information provided by the United Nations.
The United Nations provided the result of its investigations both the United States Authorities and the Indian government.
Secretary-General Kofi Annan had lifted his diplomatic immunity in consonance of his declared policy that he would do so in case of any officer who is charged with criminal wrongdoing.
A UN employee, who is charged with criminal wrongdoing, can be prosecuted in the country he or she had committed alleged crime.
The indictment charges him with inviting re-bids to ensure that Kohli's companies get the contracts and also providing him with access to information not available to other bidders.
