Navy officer convicted in Afghan visa bribery scheme

A federal jury convicted an officer in the Navy Reserves last week for his involvement in a bribery scheme to provide unknown Afghan nationals visas to the United States.

Cmdr. Jeromy Pittmann, 53, a civil engineer corps officer who deployed to Afghanistan in 2014 and 2015 with NATO Special Operations Command, received thousands of dollars for drafting, submitting, and falsely verifying bogus letters of recommendation for Afghan nationals seeking a Special Immigrant Visa that would allow them to live in the U.S., according to the Department of Justice.

The State Department issues a limited number of Special Immigrant Visas to Afghans who assisted U.S. troops and diplomats during the War in Afghanistan and served as translators.

In more than 20 letters, Pittmann claimed that he personally knew and oversaw the Afghan national visa applicants, and asserted they had served as interpreters for the U.S. military and NATO troops. These letters also claimed that these applicant’s lives were endangered by the Taliban, and affirmed his belief that they were not a national security threat to the U.S.

Navy officer charged with taking bribes to provide Afghan refugees with visas

“In reality, Pittmann did not know the applicants and had no basis for recommending them for SIVs,” the Department of Justice said in a news release. “In exchange, Pittmann received several thousands of dollars in bribes.”

“To avoid detection, Pittmann received the bribe money through an intermediary and created false invoices purporting to show that he was receiving the money for legitimate work unrelated to his military service,” the Department of Justice said.

Pittmann commissioned in 2003, and is a civil engineer corps officer, according to service records obtained by Navy Times.

Pittman first appeared in federal court in March 2022 on charges of accepting bribes and conspiring to commit visa fraud. Court documents alleged Pittmann worked with an unnamed co-conspirator in Kabul who solicited Pittmann’s assistance back in February 2018. The documents indicate Pittmann and the co-conspirator met during Pittmann’s deployment to Afghanistan in 2014 and 2015.

The money was wired to Pittmann through a Bank of America account in Hayward, California, and to an account with USAA in Pensacola, Fla., under the label “family support,” according to court documents.

“I got it today. Thank you and thank your friend for sending it,” Pittmann said in an email after receiving a payment in 2018, according to court documents. “I just wish the money would keep coming. Ha. Maybe one day we will get a business started. It would be nice to pay off my debts.”

Pittmann ultimately was convicted of conspiracy to commit bribery and false writing, bribery, false writing, and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering, the Justice Department said.

Pittmann’s sentencing is slated for Oct. 21, and he faces up to 45 years behind bars.