US soldiers charged with corruption in Afghanistan

Surghar Daily Two US soldiers and two other American nationals working for an Afghan contracting company have been charged in a money laundering and bribery case dating back to 2004. Charles Finch, 44, of Hawaii is accused of taking a 50,000-dollar bribe in exchange for influencing the awarding of a Pentagon trucking contract to AZ Corporation, an Afghan contracting firm, while based at Bagram, north of Kabul.His roommate at the air base, first sergeant Gary Canteen, 41, of Delaware, is accused of using his bank account to cover up the nature and source of the payment. "The indictment alleges that the owners of AZ Corporation, brothers Assad John Ramin, 40, and Tahir Ramin, 32, both of Pennsylvania, offered the bribe to Finch," a Justice Department statement said. The bribe was allegedly paid through the business account of Canteen, who passed on a portion of the funds to Finch. "According to the indictment, shortly after the money was delivered to Canteen, Finch recommended the award of the contract to AZ Corporation, which was awarded the contract," the Justice Department said. The brothers were charged in 2008 and 2009 for taking bribes in a similar contracting case involving the building of bunkers and barriers at Bagram.