A Bangladeshi man and a U.S. citizen pleaded guilty in a White Plains federal court Oct. 17 to bribery and fraud charges in a case in which a former FBI agent is also charged. Rizve Ahmed, aka “Caesar,” 35, of Danbury, Connecticut, and Johannes Thaler, 51, of New Fairfield, Connecticut admitted to participating in a bribery scheme with Robert Lustyik, a former FBI Special Agent who worked on the counterintelligence squad in the White Plains Resident Agency, a U.S. Department of Justice press release said. Thaler was Lustyik’s friend, and Ahmed was an acquaintance of Thaler.
Thaler and Ahmed pled guilty to one count of bribery and one count of conspiracy to commit honest services and wire fraud. Both face a maximum sentence of 35 years in prison, and are scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Briccetti on Jan. 23, 2015.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice press release, the two admitted that between September 2011 and March 2012, Thaler and Lustyik solicited bribes from Ahmed, in exchange for agreement to provide confidential documents and information to which the special agent had access.
Ahmed sought confidential law enforcement information regarding a Bangladeshi political figure, according to the press release. The press release however did not reveal the name of the politician but said he was “affiliated with a political party opposing Ahmed’s views.”
Ahmed requested the confidential information to locate and harm his intended victim and others associated with the victim. He also sought assistance in having criminal charges against a different Bangladeshi political figure dismissed.
As part of the scheme, Thaler and Ahmed exchanged text messages, including text messages about a “contract” the terms of which would require Ahmed to pay a $40,000 “retainer” and $30,000 “monthly” and, in return, Lustyik and Thaler would “give [Ahmed] everything [they] ha[d] plus set up [Individual 1] and get the inside from the party,” the press release said.
Lustyik and Thaler also exchanged text messages about how to pressure Ahmed to pay them additional money in exchange for confidential information. Lustyik and Thaler accepted at least $1,000 from Ahmed in exchange for the confidential FBI information, including a Suspicious Activity Report. Lustyik and Thaler schemed to obtain additional monthly cash bribes from Ahmed, in increments of tens of thousands of dollars, in exchange for additional confidential law enforcement information about Individual 1 and for assistance in having criminal charges against a Bangladeshi political figure dismissed.
Charges against Lustyik, the other defendant who was charged with Thaler and Ahmed, remain pending. Trial is scheduled to begin on Nov. 17.