A Maryland business owner has confessed to engaging in a bribery operation to unduly influence a U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP) official. Charged with one count of honest services wire fraud, 49-year-old Christopher Cassity of Glenwood, Maryland, could now face up to 20 years behind bars, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office yesterday.

According to court filings, between 2019 and 2022, Cassity conspired with an unnamed information system security officer (ISSO) based in Pharr to manipulate contract awards by the CBP. The elaborate scheme saw the ISSO exerting pressure on CBP contracting officials to preferentially select companies that would, in turn, subcontract with Cassity's firm, IVV Solutions. This chosen list of contractors was expected to subsequently hire IVV Solutions to perform "independent verification and validation services."

The justice system's sledgehammer has yet to officially land on Cassity, who is slated for sentencing on February 10, 2025. However, substantial figures have already painted the canvas of his guilt; Cassity's company netted roughly $814,570 from CBP contracts over the course of this connivance, while the ISSO received kickbacks amounting to nearly $443,125. Cassity made around 58 of these illicit transactions to the ISSO, masking them as payments for non-existent services, among them translation work.

Cassity has yet to officially receive his sentence, having been allowed to remain on bond pending the outcome. When the gavel finally falls, he may be sentenced to a significant stint in federal lockup alongside a potential fine of up to $250,000. Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri and Assistant Commissioner Matthew Klein of CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility have confirmed the ongoing investigation into the case, which is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Schammel and Trial Attorney Demetrius D. Sumner.