Serious Fraud Office secures conviction of former MoD official

SFO investigators uncovered the fact that Cook concealed payments and gifts totalling more than £70,000 while he was employed at the MoD and seconded to a defence contractor, namely Paradigm, that was owned by Airbus.

Between 2004 and 2008, Cook used his position as a civil servant to commission five reports for the MoD on its ‘SANGCOM’ Project to provide military communications equipment and services to the Saudi Arabian National Guard. The reports examined topics including ‘SANGCOM project activities’, ‘strategic considerations’ and ‘business strategy’.

ME Consultants Ltd, registered in the Cayman Islands and where Cook held personal contacts, were paid £700,000 for this work, with at least 10% of this fee going back to Cook directly.

Cook received over £44,000 in cash and two cars worth over £30,000, arranged via a Chelmsford car dealership belonging to Peter Austin, the principal shareholder at the consultancy.  

Following his secondment, Cook left the MoD to join the UK defence firm GPT Special Project Management Ltd – which was bought by Paradigm in 2007 – as its managing director. The SFO successfully prosecuted GPT in 2021 as part of this case when the company pleaded guilty to corruption and paid a penalty totalling almost £30 million for its actions.

Cook is due to be sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on 12 April.

Nick Ephgrave QPM, director of the Serious Fraud Office, said: “This was an exceptionally complex investigation and prosecution which no other public body could have delivered. Jeffrey Cook betrayed public confidence and, thanks to our tenacity on this case, has rightly been held accountable for his actions.”