U.S. Navy Admiral Convicted of Bribery Over Post-Retirement Job Offer
A federal jury has convicted Adm. Robert Burke (USN, ret'd) on bribery charges related to post-service employment in the private sector. While it is commonplace for admirals to take positions with defense contractors after leaving the military, prosecutors alleged that Burke arranged a six-figure contract for his future employer before he departed the service. As a four-star admiral, Burke is among the highest-ranking officers ever convicted of a federal crime.
The story began in 2018, when training firm Next Jump received a subcontract from the Navy for a pilot program. The Navy terminated it the following year, leaving Next Jump without any military contracts. Next Jump's co-chief executives, defendants Yongchul "Charlie" Kim and Meghan Messenger, emailed Adm. Burke - at that point the vice chief of naval operations - in hopes of reestablishing the business relationship. An aide to Adm. Burke responded and asked them not to contact him again, given "upcoming contracting actions."
Beginning in late 2020, shortly after Adm. Burke became Commander Naval Forces Europe and Africa, Kim repeatedly tried to get in touch with him despite this order to cease outreach, according to charging documents. In April 2021, Burke agreed to take a call with Kim and his co-CEO on WhatsApp.
Describing the call after the fact, Kim said that Burke "wants to work for us but we're asking for a deal first," adding that co-CEO Meghan Messenger "felt slimy" about the discussion, prosecutors claimed.
Next Jump co-CEO Charlie Kim, a co-defendant in the case, circa 2018 (USAF file image)
In May 2021, Adm. Burke allegedly directed a staffer to search for money that could be directed to a contract for Next Jump's training services - even though Naval Forces Europe had not previously identified a need for such training. Shortly after, Kim allegedly laid out a job proposal for Burke: if the admiral secured a workforce training contract for Next Jump from Naval Forces Europe, and the admiral stayed in the Navy six months afterwards to promote the training service-wide, he would get a post-retirement job at Next Jump. The offer included a salary of $500,000 per year plus stock options, according to charging documents.
Burke allegedly kept to this agreement. He and his staff allegedly arranged a $355,000 procurement solicitation that was designed to fit the parameters of Next Jump's "On My Mind" leadership training, resulting in a $257,000 subcontract award for the company. Kim, Messenger and their associates flew to Naples, Italy and Rota, Spain to deliver the training to personnel in Burke's command.
Burke stayed in the Navy for six more months, and during that time, he allegedly promoted the training to other senior Navy officers (and to contacts in a foreign military) - without disclosing any employment agreement with Next Jump. He retired in May 2022, then started an executive position at Next Jump about five months later.
Between Burke's start date in October 2022 and January 2023, he earned about $125,000 in wages from the training contractor, prosecutors said.
In September 2023, federal prosecutors charged Burke, Kim and Messenger with conspiracy and bribery for this alleged arrangement. Burke was also charged with concealing facts related to the scheme, as well as official acts that affected his personal financial interests.
Kim and Messenger are scheduled to face trial in August. Burke's separate trial finished early this week: a jury in D.C. District Court found Adm. Burke guilty on all charges. Sentencing is scheduled for August 2025.
"When you abuse your position and betray the public trust to line your own pockets, it undermines the confidence in the government you represent," said interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, formerly a legal commentator on Fox News. "Our office, with our law enforcement partners, will root out corruption – be it bribes or illegal contracts – and hold accountable the perpetrators, no matter what title or rank they hold."
Burke's defense lawyer, Tim Parlatore - the personal attorney of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, as well as a Navy Reserve JAG officer in Hegseth's office - told Military.com that the military and government investigation into Burke's case had been done incompetently, and that evidence had been hidden from the jury. Parlatore suggested that the verdict was wrongful, and that the prosecution had not presented the full story.
Kim and Messenger have yet to face trial, and they are pleading not guilty. Their attorney told The Washington Post that they had relied upon Burke and that Burke had misled them. "I think it'll be embarrassing for the Navy," Next Jump attorney Reed Brodsky told the Post.