Probation, and Remorse, for Figure in Oil-for-Food Case 
By http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/f/alan_feuer/index.html?inline=nyt-per \o More Articles by Alan Feuer Alan Feuer
April 25, 2008
The New York Times
Original Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/25/world/middleeast/25vincent.html
An Iraqi-American businessman who was ensnared in — and eventually cooperated with — the sprawling investigation into improprieties in the http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/u/united_nations/index.html?inline=nyt-org \o More articles about the United Nations. United Nations’ oil-for-food program was sentenced on Thursday in Manhattan to three years of probation.
The businessman, Samir A. Vincent, a naturalized citizen who has long been involved in Iraqi-American affairs, pleaded guilty in 2005 to working secretly on behalf of the Iraqi government to lobby American and United Nations officials about the oil-for-food program. In exchange, he received millions of dollars in concessions to sell Iraqi oil.
The oil-for-food program was established in 1996 to help ease the effects on civilians of sanctions imposed after http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/iraq/index.html?inline=nyt-geo \o More news and information about Iraq. Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990. 
Although he once faced a maximum sentence of 28 years in prison on the charges, Mr. Vincent avoided prison time, largely because of the substantial cooperation he provided to federal prosecutors investigating the case. He was the chief government witness in the criminal trials of Tongsun Park, a South Korean businessman who was sentenced to three years in prison on charges of trying illegally to influence United Nations officials, and of http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/w/oscar_s_wyatt_jr/index.html?inline=nyt-per \o More articles about Oscar S. Wyatt Jr. Oscar S. Wyatt Jr., a http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/national/usstatesterritoriesandpossessions/texas/index.html?inline=nyt-geo \o More news and information about Texas. Texas oil tycoon, who was sentenced to a year and a day in the case.
Standing before Judge http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/c/denny_chin/index.html?inline=nyt-per \o More articles about Denny Chin. Denny Chin, of Federal District Court in Manhattan, Mr. Vincent, 67, said he was “very ashamed” of his actions. He said that his original intention was to help the Iraqi people but that he was “overwhelmed” by the vast sums of money passing through the program.
Under the oil-for-food program, Iraq was permitted to sell its oil under the condition that the proceeds be put into a special account the government could use to buy relief supplies for its own population.
Mr. Vincent, who lives and runs a business in http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/national/usstatesterritoriesandpossessions/virginia/index.html?inline=nyt-geo \o More news and information about Virginia. Virginia, has acknowledged that Iraqi officials signed agreements in 1996 to pay him and Mr. Park $15 million for their lobbying services. One of their tasks was “to take care of” certain United Nations officials, which Mr. Vincent has said he understood to mean pay bribes.