Navy Reserve Commander Sentenced For Helping Afghan Nationals Obtain Visas Into US In Exchange For Bribes

A federal court on Monday sentenced an American Navy Reserve officer to two-and-a-half years in prison for his role in helping Afghan nationals obtain special visas into the United States in exchange for cash.

Jeromy Pittmann, a 53-year-old U.S. Navy Reserve commander from Florida, was sentenced to 30 months in prison for the years-long scheme which included drafting and submitting fraudulent letters of recommendations on behalf of Afghans who applied for Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs), according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). The sentencing follows warnings by federal watchdogs that the vetting of Afghans into the U.S. after the botched military pullout of the country was poorly conducted.

“Pittmann’s participation in this bribery scheme not only jeopardized the integrity of the SIV program, which protects our allies, but also introduced significant security risks to our nation,” Special Agent in Charge Greg Gross of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Economic Crimes Field Office stated.

“NCIS and our partners will continue to hold accountable those who exploit government processes for personal gain, ensuring that the safety of the public and our warfighters is preserved,” Gross continued.

SIVs can provide permanent residency to Afghan and Iraqi nationals who have given assistance to the U.S. government abroad, according to the State Department. Those eligible, such as translators for the military, can obtain a direct path to a green card for themselves and their dependents.

Pittmann signed more than 20 letters of recommendation for Afghan SIV applicants, fraudulently claiming that he personally knew the applicants while they worked as translators for U.S. military personnel and NATO, and that their lives were at risk because the Taliban considered them traitors, according to the DOJ. He also claimed in these letters that, due to this personal knowledge of the individuals, he did not believe that they posed a risk to the national security of the U.S.