21 Jan 2019

Businessman charged with bribing Hawaii, FSM officials

11:57 am on 21 January 2019

A Hawaii businessman has been charged with dishing out bribes of nearly half a million dollars to officials in Hawaii and the Federated States of Micronesia.

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Last week, the US Justice Department filed charges in the US District Court for Hawaii against Frank James Lyon who's the president of the civil engineering firm LYON Associates in Honolulu.

Between 2006 and 2016, it's alleged Frank James Lyon made bribe payments of at least $US200,000 to Micronesian officials.

According to court documents first reported by Hawaii News Now, in exchange he and his co-conspirators obtained around $US7.8 million in contract payments.

It's alleged that between 2011 and 2016 Mr Lyon spent another $US240,000, this time to Hawaii officials.

He subsequently won a $US2.5 million contract.

Prosecutors allege the bribes came in the form of vehicles, gifts and entertainment for officials, and were falsely classified as business expenses.