You Gotta Know When to Hold ‘Em, Know When to, Damn!

| January 12, 2019

cardsA Navy officer was sentenced to more than four years behind bars for defrauding the Navy out of over $2.7 million to fund a lavish lifestyle that included high-stakes gambling. (Getty Images)

By: J.D. Simkins
“Money won is twice as sweet as money earned,” Paul Newman says in “The Color of Money.”

Unfortunately for one Navy officer based in Virginia Beach, he neither won nor earned the $2.7 million he stole from the government to fund a lavish life of high-stakes poker, flashy cars and a second home — and Fat Leonard wasn’t even involved.

Lt. Randolph Prince, 45, was sentenced to more than four years behind bars for swindling the exorbitant sum by directing his unit’s supply contracts for “inert training aides” to fictitious companies run by his accomplices, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

“It’s a shame that he squandered an otherwise outstanding 27-year Naval career,” Prince’s defense attorney Shawn Cline told the Virginian-Pilot. “He suffered from a terrible gambling addiction and abused a position of trust to fuel that addiction.”

Lt. j.g. Courtney Cloman, a flight officer, and Clayton Pressley III, a former sailor and Bronze Star recipient, assisted Prince in the scheme.

A member of Explosive Ordnance Disposal Training and Evaluation Unit 2, Prince would make purchase requests for military equipment on behalf of his command, the DoJ release said, and would sign off on receiving the products once they were delivered.

When the Navy’s requests would land on the desks of the spurious companies run by Prince and his associates, they would produce fraudulent documentation to show the contract had been accepted.

The Navy, however, would never receive any of the agreed upon products, and the money was instead divvied up between Cloman, Pressley and Prince, who pleaded guilty in August to charges of wire fraud and falsifying a 2014 tax statement.

The rest of the article may be read here: The Navy Times

Yeah, cry me a river for Prince shitcanning his 27 year career.

Category: Blue Falcons, Crime, Navy

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rgr769

45 years old and only an O-3; he certainly must be a stellar officer, career wise.

Mason

LDO maybe? Does say 27 years TIS.

rgr769

I guess he only served a little over four years as an officer. Obviously, his training in honesty and integrity is sorely lacking. But then if you have to learn those traits, your character doesn’t warrant the responsibility he was given.

rgr769

Correction: Ten years as an officer; he was promoted to O-3 in 2012.

Tuan Pham

He’s an LDO. Enlisted in 1991. Received commission in 2008. Got promoted to full LT in 2012.

26Limabeans

“He suffered from a terrible gambling addiction”

No PTSD? Addiction will get you sympathy but PTSD will get you compensated. Guy needs a better lawer.

Steve

“Suffering” from an addiction.

Always loved that one.

‘He’s not a junkie, he’s battling through an addiction’

What a load of shit.

I’m a smoker, and yeah I’m addicted, but every smoke I have, I chose to have. The only thing to blame for me lighting up, is me.

Joe Roberts

Yep. Addiction’s a choice, but so is quitting. I smoked for forty years, up to sixty a day and I quit cold. Gambling’s a choice too, a bad one in his case.

Comm Center Rat

“Playing for the high one, dancing with the devil
Going with the flow, it’s all a game to me
Seven or eleven, snake eyes watching you
Double up or quit, double stake or split
The Ace of Spades”

Motorhead, 1980

The Stranger

Pushing up the ante
I know you’re gonna see me
Read them and weap
The dead man’s hand again
The only card you see
You know it’s gonna be…
The Ace of Spades
The Ace of Spades!

Man, I miss Lemmy. Seen him in concert twice back in the 90’s.

NHSparky

And don’t forget the joker!

Comm Center Rat

We are Motorhead and we play rock n’ roll!

RIP Lemmy, Phil “Philthy Animal” Taylor, and “Fast” Eddie Clarke

Born to lose, live to win

The Stranger

That sums it up. My understanding was that Lemmy hated it when people said that Motörhead was a heavy metal band. He was of the belief that they were a rock and roll band and I agree. Also, I remember telling my guitar playing buddy to slow down the lick from Ace of Spades without the overdrive and guess what? It’s a country song!

Mason

I’m really impressed a couple lieutenants were able to swing $2.7m in fraud. That’s usually an O-5 or higher level of check signing authority.

Enjoy jail and your DDs, you greedy assholes.

5th/77th FA

Piss away 27 years of hard work and sacrifice for a three way split of 2.7 mil. Almost at retirement, let’s do the math. Gonna live at least 30 + years longer at how much a year in pay and bennies?

I guess after your 4 years to serve, the training you receive in prison may help you get hired on as apprentice towel boy for Brucie’s Bath House (entrance in the rear). Going to need to take in a lot of “tips”. (wink, wink, nod,nod)

Hack Stone

Maybe All Points Logistics still has that senior executive opening in their Reston VA office. He can’t be any worse than the last guy.

Thunderstixx

DOH !!!!!
Head slap…..
That’s gonna leave a mark for certain…

Mason

I remember that ass. Thought the name sounded vaguely familiar.

Cameron Kingsley

Birds of a feather flock together.

USAF RET

dollars to donuts Pressley cut a deal and ratted the other 2 out

MSG Eric

Wow, I’ve gotta have an O-4 sign off on 200 dollars in the Army but a couple lieutenants in the Navy can work out 2.7 million? What the holy hell?

Devtun

Just speculating, but maybe because the Navy has a smaller officer force by percentage compared to the army or air force plays a role in pushing responsibility down the CoC.

Devtun

Oops, meant to add: Still, $2.7M does seem more appropriate for 0-5 or 0-6 level. An 0-3? Yikes!

A Proud Infidel®™

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. Now all those involved have the rest of their lives to enjoy the consequences of their actions!