LOS ANGELES, CA – A Navy veteran has been sentenced to 36 months in federal prison for defrauding the U.S. Navy of more than $9 million through a scheme involving bid rigging, contract steering, kickbacks and false invoices, federal prosecutors announced.
Cory Taylor Wright, 49, of Columbus, Georgia, was sentenced on Sept. 22 by U.S. District Judge Stanley Blumenfeld Jr. Wright was also ordered to pay $9,128,515 in restitution to the Navy. He had pleaded guilty in September 2025 to one count of wire fraud.
The case was connected to the Navy’s Mobile Utilities Support Equipment, or MUSE, division at the naval base in Port Hueneme in Ventura County. Wright worked for MUSE at various points between 2005 and 2017, before retiring from the Navy in May 2017 after roughly two decades of service.
The U.S. Navy’s MUSE program provides specialized equipment and technical personnel for temporary utility and critical-power support at Department of Defense facilities around the world. The program is headquartered at Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center in Port Hueneme.
Scheme involved Navy insider
According to Wright’s plea agreement, the scheme began in December 2016, shortly before his retirement, and continued until August 2022.
Wright and Juan Carlos Aragon, a fellow Navy servicemember who was working at MUSE at the time, created a Georgia-based company called C&C Power Solutions LLC, or CCP.
Aragon later retired from the Navy in 2021. Before his retirement, he held several positions at MUSE, including supervisory roles that prosecutors said gave him considerable influence over Navy contracts.
The two agreed that Aragon would eventually become a 50% partner in the company after leaving the Navy.
Prosecutors said Aragon used his position to help direct Navy contracts to CCP, while Wright provided him with thousands of dollars in kickbacks and other benefits. Those benefits included payments to a sporting club operated by Aragon.
Fake bids and false invoices
The scheme also involved manipulating the federal contracting process.
According to court documents cited by federal prosecutors, Wright and Aragon arranged for multiple fake bids to be submitted in connection with Navy work. One example involved a 2017 task order worth approximately $790,496.
The fake bids contained estimated project costs that were substantially higher than CCP’s submitted bid, creating the appearance of a competitive procurement process while helping CCP secure the work.
Wright also prepared invoices that falsely represented that CCP had completed work and delivered products to MUSE.
The invoices were then used by a prime contractor to seek payment from the Navy. Prosecutors said the false documentation ultimately caused the Navy to issue payments for work and products that CCP was not entitled to receive.
The allegations were not limited to individual task orders. Beginning in September 2017, Wright and Aragon also worked to position CCP to become a prime contractor for MUSE, a contract that they understood could be worth tens of millions of dollars to the company.
Contract awarded in 2019
According to the Justice Department, Wright and Aragon created additional documents to support CCP’s effort to obtain the larger contract.
Among the documents was a fraudulent past-performance questionnaire. The pair also concealed Aragon’s role and financial interest in CCP from the Navy, including his involvement in the company’s successful bid proposal.
The Navy awarded CCP the prime contract in July 2019.
Prosecutors said Wright continued submitting false documents and invoices after the award. Three task orders connected to the company were ultimately terminated in late 2022 and early 2023.
Federal prosecutors determined that the total loss to the Navy was approximately $9.13 million.
Co-conspirator also sentenced
Aragon separately pleaded guilty to one count of bribery of a public official on April 21.
Judge Blumenfeld sentenced him on Aug. 25 to 12 months and one day in federal prison and ordered him to pay $97,960 in restitution.
The case was investigated by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.
Wright’s prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ian V. Yanniello of the National Security Division.
Port Hueneme connection
The case centered in part on MUSE operations at Port Hueneme, where the Navy maintains the program’s headquarters.
The Navy describes MUSE as a specialized operation providing mobile power plants, transformers, substations and technical expertise when military facilities face temporary utility shortages or other critical power requirements. Its missions can include facility support, emergency response, expeditionary operations and assistance during natural disasters.
That operational role means MUSE contracts can involve equipment and services supporting military facilities beyond the Port Hueneme installation itself.
The fraud case, however, concerned the procurement and payment process used to obtain those contracts rather than the Navy’s underlying mission of providing utility support.
Federal prosecutors said the fraudulent scheme ultimately resulted in more than $9 million being paid to which Wright and his company were not entitled.
The sentence and restitution order now conclude the federal prosecution against Wright following his guilty plea.
