NEW YORK, NY — Robert Schirmer, a senior executive at Polar Air Cargo Worldwide, Inc., pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and honest services fraud. The plea was made before U.S. District Judge Jesse M. Furman.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams stated that Schirmer admitted to a decade-long scheme defrauding his employer, emphasizing the commitment of his office to eradicating corporate fraud.
According to public records and court proceedings, Schirmer, along with nine other individuals, was part of an elaborate fraud against Polar starting from at least 2009 through July 2021. Three of these individuals, including Schirmer, held senior executive positions at Polar, while the remaining six operated as vendors and customers. These senior executives accepted millions of dollars in kickbacks from vendors in exchange for favorable business deals. The corruption impacted nearly every aspect of Polar’s operations for more than a decade.
Due to the fraud, Schirmer and two other senior executives at Polar received unlawful payments exceeding $23 million. These payments came either directly or through controlled limited liability companies as kickbacks or disbursements connected to their secret ownership in certain vendors.
Schirmer, 58, of Port Jefferson Station, New York, now faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison. In addition to the prison term, he has agreed to forfeit $983,759.32 and make restitution to Polar in the amount of $9,340,729.