Former Air Force Contracting Specialist Sentenced to 30 Months for Bribery Scheme Involving Millions in DOD Contracts in Alaska

FAIRBANKS – A former U.S. Air Force Contract Specialist assigned to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson (JBER), was sentenced to 30 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and forfeiture of $47,000 in unlawful gains by Senior U.S. District Court Judge Ralph R. Beistline for conspiracy and agreeing to accept nearly half a million in bribes from a private contractor.

According to court documents, Brian Lowell Nash II, 33, of Washington, agreed to accept more than $460,000 in bribe payments in 2019 from a government contractor, Ryan Dalbec, who, along with his wife, Riahnna Nadem, owned a construction company called Best Choice Construction LLC. In exchange, Nash provided Dalbec and Nadem with confidential bidding information on over $8,250,000 in U.S. Department of Defense contracts at Eielson AFB and JBER, which helped Best Choice win some of the contracts, including a construction contract related to the F-35 aircraft program at Eielson Air Force Base and contracts to perform construction and related services at JBER. At the time Nash was caught he had received approximately $47,000 of the agreed upon bribe payments, much of which he laundered through family members to conceal the nature and source of the funds. The defendants committed multiple overt acts in furtherance of the bribery conspiracy, and between March and October 2019 Dalbec, Nadem and Nash laundered payments and proceeds from the bribery scheme to conceal their unlawful activities. Nash previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy and acceptance of bribes by a public official.

“My office is committed to protecting the integrity of the Department of Defense (DoD) procurement system in Alaska,” said U.S Attorney S. Lane Tucker for the District of Alaska. “This case demonstrates our resolve, along with our law enforcement partners, to bring to justice those who subvert the DoD contracting process for their own gain. This sentence sends a strong message that bribery and fraud will be met with serious consequences.”

“In a severe violation of the public’s trust, the defendant chose to line his own pockets at the expense of taxpayers, and undermined the government’s competitive contracting practices,” said Special Agent in Charge Antony Jung of the FBI Anchorage Field Office. “The FBI will continue to investigate and disrupt such schemes and hold accountable those who seek to use taxpayer dollars for private gain.”

Dalbec and Nadem previously pleaded guilty to felonies related to this conduct and are scheduled for sentencing at the end of 2022.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI) conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan D. Tansey.

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