Federal Authorities Arrest U.N. Official on Misconduct Charges
By BENNY AVNI
The New York Sun
November 2, 2006
UNITED NATIONS — A U.N. official at the center of the Turtle Bay procurement scandals, Sanjaya Bahel, was arrested yesterday in New York by federal authorities on charges of misconduct, according to U.N. and federal officials.
Mr. Bahel is accused of using his position at the procurement department to benefit two companies, including the Indian government-owned Telecommunications Consultants India Ltd. He is expected to be arraigned today in federal court. A representative of the two companies, Nishahn Kohli, was also arrested yesterday in Miami.
Mr. Bahel, 55, "allegedly sold his influence as a U.N. procurement official," the U.S attorney for the Southern District of New York, Michael Garcia, said in a statement. "He favored Nishahn Kohli's companies in obtaining and maintaining valuable U.N. contracts, and he personally profited as a result."
According to the federal indictment, Mr. Bahel granted special access to Mr. Kohli's companies, allowing him to secure U.N. contracts worth more than $50 million for TCIL and $12 million for the other company he represented, Thunderbird. In return, Mr. Bahel received a Midtown condominium owned by Mr. Kohli, which Mr. Bahel's family first rented at a discount, then later purchased for a price "substantially below" its market value.
