Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of D.C. Jeanine Pirro has her first conviction just days after she was appointed to the post by President Donald Trump.
Admiral Robert Burke (USN-Ret.), 62, of Coconut Creek, Florida, was found guilty of bribery today for accepting a future job offer from a government contractor in exchange for awarding that company a federal contract, the Justice Department said in a press release.
After a five-day trial, a federal jury convicted Burke of conspiracy to commit bribery, bribery, performing acts affecting a personal financial interest, and concealing material facts from the United States. U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden scheduled his sentencing for August 22, 2025.
“The verdict was announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro, Matthew R. Galeotti Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Greg Gross of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Economic Crimes Field Office, Assistant Director in Charge Steven J. Jensen of the FBI Washington Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Stanley Newell of the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General’s (DoD OIG) Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Transnational Field Office,” the press release stated.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, from 2020 to 2022, Burke served as a four-star admiral overseeing U.S. naval operations across Europe, Russia, and much of Africa, commanding thousands of military and civilian personnel.
Co-defendants Kim and Messenger, who served as co-CEOs of a company identified as Company A, had previously provided a workforce training pilot program to a small Navy unit between August 2018 and July 2019. The Navy terminated its contract with Company A in late 2019 and instructed the company not to contact Burke.
Despite the Navy’s directive, the co-defendants met with Burke in Washington, D.C., in July 2021 to attempt to revive Company A’s business relationship with the Navy. During that meeting, the defendants agreed that Burke would leverage his position as a Navy Admiral to steer a contract to Company A in exchange for future employment with the company.
They also agreed that Burke would use his authority to influence other Navy officials to award a second, larger contract to Company A—intended to train a broader segment of the Navy—with one co-defendant allegedly estimating its value to be in the “triple digit millions.”
“When you abuse your position and betray the public trust to line your own pockets, it undermines the confidence in the government you represent,” said Pirro. “Our office, with our law enforcement partners, will root out corruption – be it bribes or illegal contracts – and hold accountable the perpetrators, no matter what title or rank they hold.”
