美国海军高级军官爆出腐败丑闻

US investigators are probing three dozen senior navy officers to determine if they were connected with a scandal that involved top US brass exchanging military secrets for cash, lavish meals and prostitutes.

美国调查人员正在调查30多名海军高级军官，以确定他们是否与一起丑闻有牵连，这起丑闻涉及美军高官用军事机密换取现金、奢华饭局和妓女服务。

Investigators from the Department of Justice and the Navy Criminal Investigative Service are probing the officers — who are either admirals or captains in line for promotion to admiral — as part of a multiyear investigation into a Malaysian contractor known as “Fat Leonard” who used his connections with the US Navy to bilk the service out of millions of dollars.

美国司法部(DoJ)和美国海军犯罪调查处(NCIS)的调查人员正在调查涉案海军军官（这些人不是海军上将就是有望晋升上将的上校级军官），作为针对“胖子莱纳德”(Fat Leonard)的多年调查的一部分，此人是马来西亚承包商，涉嫌利用其在美国海军的人脉诈骗数百万美元。

The Washington Post on Friday published an investigation into the scandal, which revealed how the contractor, a wealthy Malaysian whose real name is Leonard Glenn Francis and who was caught in a sting in California in 2013, had cultivated senior officers in the seventh fleet which operates in the Pacific.

《华盛顿邮报》(Washington Post)上周五报道了针对这起丑闻的调查，报道称，上述马来西亚富商的真名是莱纳德•格伦•弗朗西斯(Leonard Glenn Francis)，2013年在加州的一场诱捕行动中落网。他曾拉拢在太平洋海域执行任务的美国海军第七舰队的高级军官。

Fat Leonard, weighing 350lbs at the time of his arrest, pleaded guilty to fraud in California last year. He admitted to routinely overcharging the US Navy for services such as refuelling at ports across Asia where his company, Glenn Defense Marine Asia, had contracts with the US and other western navies.

被捕时体重高达350磅的“胖子莱纳德”，去年在加州承认犯有欺诈罪。他承认经常为各项服务向美国海军收取过高费用，这些服务包括在亚洲各地的港口为舰船加油，他旗下的格伦亚洲海上防务公司(GDMA)曾与美国和其他西方国家的海军订立这方面的合同。

One US military official confirmed that criminal investigators were looking into the cases of officers who had served in the Pacific during the years that the bribery had occurred to work out if they were involved in what is seen as the worst national security scandal to hit the US Navy in decades.

一位美国军方官员证实，刑事调查人员正在调查在贿赂发生期间在太平洋服役的军官，以确定他们是否曾被拉下水，本案已被视为数十年来打击美国海军的最严重的国家安全丑闻。

The navy suffered a damaging scandal called “Tailhook” in 1991, which involved widespread sexual harassment. But the Fat Leonard case is seen as more serious since it allegedly involves the passing of military secrets to a man operating in a region where the US faces a rising challenge from China.

美国海军曾在1991年爆出被称为“尾钩”(Tailhook)的性骚扰丑闻。但是“胖子莱纳德”的案子被视为更严重，因为它涉及向在亚太地区活动的一名男子传递军事机密，而美国在该地区面临来自中国的不断升级的挑战。

The probe has drawn in approximately 10 per cent of the roughly 280 admirals in the US Navy. The military official said that while investigators were looking at a large number of top brass, some were only being scrutinised because they had served in the region during the period when the bribery occurred.

这场调查已牵涉美国海军大约280名上将当中的大约10%。上述军方官员称，尽管调查人员在调查大量高级军官，但其中有些人只是因为在贿赂发生期间在该地区服役而受到关注。

According to the Washington Post, Fat Leonard liked to use photos of himself with senior navy officers to impress junior officers or suggest that he had influence that meant they should not question his activities.

《华盛顿邮报》称，“胖子莱纳德”喜欢用自己和海军高级军官的合影向下级军官炫耀，或者暗示他拥有影响力，他们不应该质疑他的活动。

According to the Washington Post story, Fat Leonard used the allure of sex with prostitutes as a potent bribe. On one occasion, he allegedly videotaped a navy officer having sex with twin Vietnamese prostitutes in a hotel in Singapore. On other occasions, he procured prostitutes from escort services to entertain officers at parties after official events.

根据《华盛顿邮报》的报道，“胖子莱纳德”利用与妓女性爱的诱惑作为一种强有力的行贿方式。据称他有一次曾拍摄一名海军军官在新加坡的酒店与两名越南妓女发生性关系。在其他场合，他曾从陪伴服务机构召来妓女，让她们在官方活动结束后的派对上接待军官。

The justice department declined to comment on the details, but said “the investigation into those involved in this long-running corruption scheme continues apace, uncovering substantial wrongdoing”.

美国司法部拒绝就案情细节置评，但表示，“针对这个长期腐败计划的相关者的调查在继续迅速推进，揭露了重大不法行为”。