Ex–Air Force Master Sergeant Pleads Guilty in $37 Million PACAF Bid-Rigging and Bribery Case

Overview

• Alan Hayward James pleaded guilty in federal court in Honolulu to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, bribery, and bid rigging, and he agreed to pay at least $1.45 million in restitution to the Defense Department.
• Prosecutors say the scheme ran from 2016 to 2025 and inflated the cost of information-technology contracts for Pacific Air Forces bases, leading to at least $37 million in overpayments.
• Court filings describe how James told supposed rivals what to bid between 2019 and 2022 to defeat competition and steer contracts.
• Excess funds went to James, relatives, and other participants, with bribes funneled to a PACAF official nicknamed “Godfather,” and some money covered a luxury resort stay on Oahu in 2023.
• The Antitrust Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Hawaii are prosecuting the case after investigations by DOD’s criminal investigators, the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, and the GSA inspector general, and James has agreed to cooperate in related cases.