P. M. BRIEFING : Guilty Plea in Navy Bribe Scheme

A former Sperry Corp. marketing executive pleaded guilty today to charges he participated in a scheme to bribe a Navy official as part of an effort to get a lucrative electronics contract.

Frank J. Lavelle, 68, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and bribery in connection with payment of $400,000 to Garland L. Tomlin Jr., a former Navy procurement official.

Lavelle, a former marketing director for Sperry’s Clearwater, Fla., facility, faces a possible 20-year prison sentence and fines of $500,000 for his involvement in the bribery scheme that included another Sperry official and a defense consultant for the company.

Tomlin, 59, has already pleaded guilty to charges he took $400,000 from Sperry and $75,000 from Honeywell Inc. to provide confidential bid information on a multimillion-dollar contract for maintaining electronic components of Navy weapons.