Jeb Bush/David Eller Nigerian water pump bribery case to proceed to trial after 12 years

[seafan]

Yes, Virginia. There is a Santa Claus.



Lawsuit against MWI gets new life in court

By Paul Brinkmann
Reporter - South Florida Business Journal

December 9, 2011, 6:00am EST - Last Modified: Friday, December 9, 2011, 1:34pm EST

A lawsuit and investigation of a Deerfield Beach-based company with ties to former Gov. Jeb Bush have received new life after languishing for 12 years.

The lawsuit, originally filed in 1998 by Robert Purcell, a former officer of MWI Corp., accuses MWI of bribing Nigerian officials. Then they allegedly failed to disclose the bribes when applying for federal contracts. The U.S. Department of Justice joined Purcell’s lawsuit as a plaintiff in 2002.

In a 31-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Ricardo Urbina in Washington, D.C., ruled Nov. 14 that the case should proceed to trial.

MWI (formerly Moving Water Industries) manufactures ...

(subscription req'd)

.....

Interestingly, that link now seems to have gone missing in the past several hours, but not before capturing this information from it. The story headline is still on the left side of the front page of the South Florida Business Journal, but the link now leads to a dead page.



Another short clip about this revived lawsuit:


Pumping Station Co. Can't Dodge Nigerian Bribe Suit

By Sindhu Sundar
November 14, 2011

Law360, New York (November 14, 2011, 6:10 PM ET) -- A Washington federal judge on Monday refused to toss a False Claims Act suit by a former Moving Water Industries Corp. employee who accused the pumping station manufacturer of hiding $28 million in bribes to secure loans for pump sales in Nigeria.

U.S. District Judge Ricardo M. Urbina denied MWI’s motion to dismiss the suit, finding that the company had not adequately proved its argument that the original claims against it were made based on publicly available information, which the company said would strip the court...

(subscription req'd)

November 14, 2011:

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA EX REL. ROBERT R. PURCELL, PLAINTIFF, v. MWI CORPORATION, DEFENDANT.



The MWI/Jeb Bush connection has been festering for years.


Faulty water pumps in New Orleans built by former Jeb Bush partner (Bush-El water pump co., '89-'94), March 14, 2007




From August 28, 2002, in Salon:

.....

Jeb Bush’s path to fortune and fame follows a familiar Bush family trajectory — use family connections to help make a quick killing in the private sector, and use that money and business experience to launch a political career. It’s a story that’s been well documented since the media began asking questions about President Bush’s past business deals with Harken Energy Corp. and the Texas Rangers. But just like his older brother the president, now that he is a powerful elected official, Jeb Bush can’t seem to escape nagging questions about his time in the private sector.

The focus of the renewed scrutiny (by the U. S. Justice Department) is Jeb’s partnership with David Eller, president and CEO of MWI Corp., a Florida-based water pump company. The Department of Justice is now accusing MWI of using millions in U.S. government loans, obtained from the Export-Import Bank, to bribe Nigerian officials to buy MWI pumps. The suit was originally filed by a former MWI employee in 1998. The government decided to intervene on the employee’s behalf earlier this year.

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Bush was in Nigeria to help sell millions of dollars worth of MWI products to the Nigerian government. According to a 1992 Wall Street Journal article, Bush was simultaneously working to arrange a visit to the White House by Nigerian President Ibrahim Babangida. “Jeb Bush’s experiences in the pump business provide a case study in how to profit from a Presidential name — perfectly legally, by all appearances,” the Journal wrote.

But the financing of the deal that came out of those visits was less than perfectly legal, the Department of Justice now claims. A government complaint seeking millions in damages against MWI suggests political influence played a large role in MWI obtaining the multimillion dollar Export-Import loans in the first place. In fact, the government suggests that Eller’s political connections were the primary reason MWI was able to secure government loans at all. Although the suit suggests the company cashed in on its political connections to help secure the government loans, it seems to go out of its way not to mention Jeb Bush by name. The suit notes that Eller did business with “a member of a prominent national political family in an attempt to bolster MWI’s sales abroad” — an obvious reference to Jeb Bush.

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Jeb Bush has, for more than 12 years, escaped deposition in this case. That may be changing.



From March 15, 2002, in the St. Petersburg Times:

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Jeb Bush sold his share in Bush-El in 1994, and has said he earned about $648,000 from the company.

He has insisted that he received no money on the Nigerian deals, saying he took no commissions on sales backed by U.S. loans to avoid a potential conflict of interest. He said his earnings came from his work in other countries, including Mexico, Indonesia and Malaysia, but in 1998 declined to detail that work.

"You either trust me or you don't," he told the Miami Herald in 1998.

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From September 20, 1998 in the St. Petersburg Times:

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The son of former President George Bush has followed the family's patrician play book: Hurry up and get rich, then go into public service.
Trading on the famous family name, Bush gained entry to exclusive business ventures courtesy of wealthy Republicans.

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He tapped his father's Washington connections to recruit help for some questionable businessmen, including one felon who remains a fugitive wanted by the FBI. He embraced business deals that have prompted lawsuits alleging mismanagement, stock manipulation and special treatment.

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While Bush's financial network is global, it is built largely around four powerful men:

Armando Codina, .....

Thomas Petway III, .....

David Eller, .....

Richard Lawless, a former 15-year veteran of the Central Intelligence Agency who won state contracts to promote exports in Asia when Jeb Bush served as Florida commerce secretary. Later, he joined with Bush and paid him to find real estate property for Japanese investors. Just one deal in 1993 gave Bush a commission of $213,000.

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Good ol' Poppy's connections...

But (Jeb) bristles when asked if the Bush name has helped his dealmaking. "Please don't obsess on that," he said.

The DOJ and others may be a few years behind you, Jeb, but they are on your trail.

[Old and In the Way]

1. "Please don't obsess on that,"

He didn't answer the question, though, did he? Whenever a Bush makes a business deal - be it munitions, oil, security systems, or water pumps - innocent deaths just seems to be one of the unfortunate and unexpected outcomes.

[DCKit]

2. Future pResident Jeb Bush? Say it ain't so!1!!1!! nt

[seafan]

3. A kick in the waning hours of DU2. Let this trial begin. n/t