‘Fat Leonard’ seeks new attorneys ahead of sentencing in Navy bribery case, causing another delay

Published January 4, 2024 1:59 PM

By JULIE WATSON
Associated Press

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Convicted Malaysian defense contractor Leonard Francis who led a daring escape weeks before he was scheduled to be sentenced in 2022 is seeking new defense attorneys now that he is back in U.S. custody after the Venezuelan prisoner swap last month. Nicknamed “Fat Leonard,” Francis appeared in U.S. District Court in San Diego on Thursday and was visibly thinner. The judge agreed to let him change attorneys despite the prosecution’s objections that it would further delay his sentencing. Francis faced 25 years in prison for bilking the Navy out of $35 million in a scheme that involved bribing dozens of Navy officials.

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