Former Boeing Co. Chief Financial Officer Michael Sears agreed to plead guilty to conspiring to deceive the U.S. government about negotiations for a contract to provide the Air Force with refueling jets, according to a report on Sunday by Bloomberg News.
Sears is cooperating with federal prosecutors who are probing negotiations that Sears had with a former Pentagon official who had been offered a job by Boeing, a report on Bloomberg's Web site said, citing an unnamed source.
Boeing spokesman John Dern said he could not comment directly on Sears, but gave the following statement:
"It was Boeing that first uncovered the facts associated with this investigation. The company took swift action, which included dismissing Mr. Sears and simultaneously notifying the U.S. attorney, and since that time the company has been cooperating in the U.S. Attorney's investigation."
The former Pentagon official, Darleen Druyun, pleaded guilty to the same charge in April, and confirmed that she received the job offer while negotiating for the Air Force.
The investigation may delay the awarding of the $23 billion contract, which includes providing the Air Force as many as 100 planes that refuel aircraft in mid-air.
The agreement to hire Boeing was suspended pending review in November, when Druyun and Sears were fired from Boeing.
