Aerochem founder pleads guilty to bribery
Ponca City Now - June 24, 2015 7:51 am
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – The founder and president of an Oklahoma City-based company that makes paint remover has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to bribe a public official at the Corpus Christi Army Depot in Texas.
According to a news release from U.S. Attorney Sanford C. Coats, 57-year-old Aerochem founder Christopher Houston Hensley pleaded guilty Tuesday.
Aerochem sold products to the depot. The news release says Hensley and a former Aerochem officer developed a relationship with Richard Balderas Jr., a supervisor of the depot division that stripped paint off military helicopter parts. Prosecutors say the men provided Balderas with entertainment, wire transfers and more than $3,000 in cash in exchange for favorable treatment of Aerochem’s business interests.
Hensley faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Balderas has pleaded guilty to accepting a bribe as a public official.
