Four Long Islanders Indicted for Money Laundering and Bribery Schemes at JFK Airport
The New York Attorney General, Letitia James, has announced the indictment of four Long Island men and a fifth co-conspirator for their involvement in a money laundering and bribery scheme at JFK Airport. The scheme involved a high-level Delta Airlines employee and was uncovered through a joint investigation by the Attorney General’s office and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
The Indicted Individuals
The four indicted men are Raymond Kayume and Joseph Puzzo from East Northport, Irfan Syed from Lloyd Harbor, and Beau Baer from Levittown. The fifth individual involved in the scheme remains unnamed. The men were charged with multiple counts of commercial bribery, money laundering, conspiracy, and other related crimes.
Bribery Schemes at JFK Airport
The investigation uncovered three separate money laundering and bribery schemes that used fraudulent invoices and cash payments to bribe the Delta employee in exchange for securing contracts for cargo companies owned by the defendants.
The first scheme involved Syed, the CEO of Jet Way Security and Investigations, and Baer, the company’s director. They allegedly paid the Delta employee $8,000 every quarter in exchange for keeping contracts in place. The money was laundered through fake invoices from another company, Alliance Ground International (AGI), where the co-conspirator worked. The total amount of fraudulent invoice payments was approximately $375,000, and the bribes included quarterly trips to Las Vegas and yearly getaways to Atlantic City.
The second scheme involved Kayume, who laundered bribe payments to the same Delta employee. Another corporate vendor in the cargo industry entered into an agreement with the Delta employee to secure Delta’s business. The company would write fake checks to Kayume for work that was never done, and he would then split the money with the employee.
The third scheme involved Puzzo, a manager at American Compressed Gases (ACG), who arranged to pay $2 to $3 in bribes per gas canister sold. The intermediary company would keep half of the bribe money and send the rest to the Delta employee by writing rent checks for non-existent office space. In exchange for the bribes, ACG was able to maintain its business within Delta’s cargo warehouses at JFK.
Consequences of the Schemes
Attorney General Letitia James emphasized the negative impact of bribery on businesses and the general public, stating, “When businesses bribe their way to lucrative contracts, everyday New Yorkers can suffer the consequences of worse service and higher costs. ” She also stated that the defendants will be held accountable for their actions.
Port Authority inspector General John Gay also condemned the bribery schemes, stating, “Blatant bribes, fake invoices, and vacation kickbacks have no place in an environment that depends on honesty and accountability.