ALEXANDRIA, Va. - A Maryland woman who formerly worked as a federal government contracting specialist pled guilty yesterday to conspiracy to commit bribery and honest services wire fraud.

According to court documents, Kyana C. Washington, 44, worked for a company that contracted with the Government Publishing Office (GPO) to provide support for the Acquisition Services Business Unit. Washington's title at GPO was senior contract specialist, and her duties included assisting contract officers with acquisition planning and solicitation, source selection, the preparation and issuance of contracts, delivery orders, and the modifications and management of various contractual vehicles.

In August 2021, Washington met an individual identified in court records as Person A at a social gathering. Person A's business provides consulting services that include finding opportunities for his affiliate companies to secure government contracts. At the social gathering, Washington told Person A that she worked in contracting at GPO, and while she did not have direct approval authority over GPO's contracts, her supervisor did, and Washington's supervisor followed Washington's recommendations.

On Aug. 13, 2021, Washington and Person A met at a restaurant in Maryland. Washington told Person A that she could help him get contracts with GPO, but she wanted to be paid 20% of the value of the contracts she steered to Person A. Person A told Washington that he could not pay her directly, so the two agreed that Person A would pay Washington through Washington's daughter to disguise the bribe payments. Washington brought her government laptop to the meeting and showed Person A confidential information about then-available GPO contracts on which Person A and his business associates could bid. Washington and Person A identified an IT/cloud services contract (Contract-1) which Washington could plausibly steer to Person A's affiliated businesses.

In September 2021, as GPO's fiscal year was coming to a close, Washington provided Person A screenshots of her GPO computer that contained nonpublic information about GPO contracting opportunities. Person A later texted Washington the names of three of the companies he was working with, including a Fairfax County business identified in court documents as "Contractor A." Washington prepared a memorandum for GPO, dated Sept. 29, 2021, indicating that quotes were received from only three companies (those named by Person A) and recommending that Contract-1 be awarded to Contractor A.

Originally, Contract-1 was valued at approximately $1,000,000, to be paid out over five years, which would have required a higher level of approval. Instead, Washington restructured the contract so that it was valued at just under $200,000, to be paid out in one year, and subject to renewal under the same terms for a total of five years, which required only the approval of Washington's supervisor, who approved the award to Contractor A based on Washington's recommendation.

Contractor A agreed to pay Person A a percentage of the profits from the contract, and Person A agreed to pay Washington a percentage of the money that he received. Person A and Washington set up a sham "marketing agreement" between Person A's company and Washington's daughter's company to funnel the bribe payments. From the beginning to the conspiracy until the date the government disrupted the scheme, Washington received a total of $7,098.37 in bribe payments from Person A.

GPO has paid a total of $487,887.50 for work performed on Contract-1. During the conspiracy, Person A received approximately $2,362 per quarter for bringing Contract-1 to Contractor A, or a total of approximately $23,362.

Washington is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 9, 2025, and faces up to five years in prison. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; David E. Geist, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal and Cyber Division; Stephen Ravas, Acting Inspector General for AmeriCorps; and John Perez, Special Agent in Charge, Headquarters Operations, Office of Inspector General for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (FRB-CFPB OIG); and Nathan J. Deahl, Inspector General for the Government Publishing Office, made the announcement after U.S. District Judge Michael S. Nachmanoff accepted the plea.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Katherine E. Rumbaugh and Heidi B. Gesch are prosecuting the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:24-cr-186.