A retired U.S. Army colonel who went on to work for the parent company of MD Helicopters was sentenced yesterday to a $10,000 fine and five years' probation on felony conflict-of-interest charges and for making false statements to federal investigators. Last year, Norbert Vergez pleaded guilty to the charges, including those related to his role in procuring and modifying Russian Mi-17 helicopters for the Afghan Army during his time on active duty.
Vergez was accused of improprieties that included failing to disclose receiving a check for $30,000 for “relocation expenses” related to his immediate post-service employment and not disclosing the gift of a $4,000 Rolex watch to his wife from the wife of Lithuanian executive involved in the Russian helicopter deal.
He went to work for Patriarch Partners, parent company of MD Helicopters, three months after his December 2012 Army retirement. Vergez's post-service employment with MD came to light after two former executives there filed a federal whistleblower lawsuit. In their complaint, the executives cited the “level of Col. Vergez's subservience to [MD CEO Lynn] Tilton and his continuing involvement in MD's Army contracts” after accepting a job offer from the company. He no longer works at Patriarch, and the company was not implicated in the investigation.