Former Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Robert Burke was sentenced to serve six years in prison for his role in what prosecutors said was a bribery scheme in exchange for a post-retirement job.

U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden handed down the sentence Tuesday to the retired four-star admiral following a May trial during which Burke was convicted of a count each of bribery, conspiracy to commit bribery, affecting personal financial interest and false official statement. Burke was also sentenced to three years of supervised release, according to the Department of Justice.

“Admiral Burke rose to the pinnacle of the U.S. Navy, entrusted with leadership and honor. But instead of leading by example, he cashed in that trust — turning four stars into dollar signs and trading duty for a corporate payday,” U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro said in a news release. “Today’s sentence sends a clear message: if you sell your honor and trade your influence, you’ll pay the price.”

Over the course of the five-day trial, prosecutors argued Burke used his position with the Navy to route contracts to Next Jump, a company offering workforce training programs, in 2020 and 2021 in exchange for a position at the company after his retirement.

According to the Justice Department, Burke ordered his staff to award a $355,000 contract to Next Jump in December 2021 to train personnel under Burke’s command in Italy and Spain while he served as the commander of U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa.

Next Jump performed the training in January 2022. Afterwards, Burke attempted, but failed, to convince another senior Navy admiral to award another contract to Next Jump, according to the Justice Department’s news release.

According to the Justice Department, Burke made several false and misleading statements to the Navy, implying that employment discussions between Next Jump and Burke only began after the December 2021 contract was awarded. This statement, the Justice Department said, was an omission of the truth, as Burke had met with Next Jump’s co-CEOs around five months before – in July 2021 – where they discussed his post-retirement employment opportunities.

Ultimately, Burke went on to work for Next Jump in October 2022 at a yearly starting salary of $500,000 and a grant of 100,000 stock options, according to the DoJ. He left the company after a few months in early 2023.

“No individual, regardless of rank or prior service, is above the law,” said Stanley Newell, special agent for the Defense Department’s criminal investigative service. “The actions uncovered in this investigation represent a serious breach of the public trust and dishonor the values of integrity and accountability that military service demands.”

Burke’s attorneys contend the jury was presented with incomplete evidence that would prove his innocence.

“We’re disappointed in the sentence and we intend to move very quickly on appeal,” Burke’s attorney Tim Parlatore told USNI News on Tuesday. “This is a case that should not have gone this way… I respectfully disagree with the judge’s decision to prevent the jury from hearing all of the evidence.”

Next Jump chief executives Meghan Messenger and Yongchul “Charlie” Kim were also charged. The three were originally to be tried together, until Messenger and Kim motioned to be tried separately from Burke.

A separate trial for Kim and Messenger ended in a mistrial on Sept. 8. Paralatore said the jury at that trial had access to more evidence that would have helped Burke’s case.

Source: USNI News