PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — An Oregon fugitive accused of taking bribes as a state official and now believed to be hiding in Iran has told a Portland newspaper he is willing to serve a short prison sentence for what he called a “mistake.”
The Oregonian reported that Fred Monem said in recent e-mails he never cheated the state while serving as Oregon’s prison food buyer.
The 52-year-old Monem is wanted on federal charges that he took $1.2 million in kickbacks from vendors selling distressed foods to the state Corrections Department. He fled in 2007 while negotiating a plea deal with federal prosecutors.
Monem’s comments came as a federal judge Thursday spared Monem’s 47-year-old wife, Karen, from federal prison after she pleaded guilty to participating in the scheme.
