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STS CEO Indicted for Bribery

A federal grand jury has indicted Sunil Agrawal, CEO of STS Jewels and president of the Indian Diamond and Colored Stone Association (IDCA), based on allegations that he bribed a U.S. Foreign Service officer to expedite the visa process for his employees.

Michael John O’Keefe, the Deputy Non-Immigrant Visa Chief at the Toronto-based U.S. Consulate, was arrested in the District of Columbia on Thursday, August 24, and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alan Kay the following day. As of press time, Agrawal remains at large.

The 22-page indictment charges that for more than two years, Agrawal allegedly gave O’Keefe round-trip airline tickets, hotel accommodations, jewelry, meals, entertainment, exotic dancers, and a job reference. In return, O’Keefe allegedly scheduled expedited visa interview appointments and issued visas to 21 people sponsored by Agrawal to benefit himself and his business.

According to a U.S. Department of State press release, O’Keefe and Agrawal face between five and 15 years in prison, and a maximum fine of $250,000 if convicted. Both defendants have been indicted on three counts of bribery conspiracy, and aiding and abetting.

STS Jewels is an international manufacturer and distributor of colored stones with offices in New York, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Japan, India, Dubai, and Tanzania. The company specializes in tanzanite jewelry.

The indictment cites a series of e-mails in which Agrawal arranged for O’Keefe to receive presents, such as jewelry and an all-expense-paid trip from Toronto to New York, including hotel accomodations, meals, a Broadway show, and other gifts for O’Keefe, Agrawal, and two exotic dancers. Interspersed with the plans were requests for expedited visa applications from Agrawal, and affirmative responses.

The indictment quotes the following e-mail from O’Keefe to Agrawal, sent on or about August 28, 2005:

“I will be happy to issue visas to your other H1 holders. I know your company to be strong and you to be an honorable man, so I have no problem with these cases. Just send me a fax, like the last time, and I will waive the appointment and then adjudicate the case myself. . . . I have been a diplomat for 22 years and I find myself growing tired of much of the argument over visas. The young Ivce Counsuls who work for me seem to be determined to find problems. They wanted to turn down one of your employees because he was in the jewelry industry and ‘everyone knows that al-Qaeda [sic] uses to [sic] jewelry industry to raise funds.’ Needless to say I overruled the decision and explained to them that major gem importers, such as STS are no being used by al-Qaeda [sic]. Thank you aging [sic] for that trip to NYC. Even with the snow, spending two days with [the exotic dancers], showing them the city, really helped me to relax.”

The next year, O’Keefe assisted Agrawal in obtaining visas for his employees over a supervisor’s objection. On or about April 3, 2006, he sent the following e-mail:

“Sunil, Please let me know if everything is set up for the visa appointments are all set for your people. [sic] As I mentioned in a separate e-mail, the request was originally denied by my boss because he felt that appointments for five people was too much. I explained that I knew you and the company and that you had a good reason for the request. he then told me that it was my decision so I approved the appointments. If there is still a problem, I’ll take care of it, but let me know.”

On April 12, 2006, Agrawal made hotel reservations, to be charged to the STS corporate credit card, for O’Keefe and the two exotic dancers mentioned above. He also paid for round-trip airline tickets for all three to Las Vegas during The JCK Show.

Similar communications continued back and forth until August 1, 2006.

Prior to his appointment at the consulate in Toronto, O’Keefe worked for the State Department’s Office of East African Affairs, Madagascar and Tanzania. In that capacity, he attended the American Gem Trade Association’s GemFair in Tucson, Arizona, in 2006 to assure trade and consumer press that the the State Department had found no connection between the trade in tanzanite and Al Qaeda.

The indictment calls for O'Keefe to forfeit $5,000, a ruby pendant, a ruby ring, a tanzanite ring and a men's ring that he allegedly received as bribes.

Phone calls requesting comment from IDCA and STS Jewels were not returned.

July/August 2006 • Dubai: Color in the City of Gold • Reader's Choice Award: Hometown Girl • Gem Imports: U.S., Europe, Japan • In This Issue