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// DOSSIER — fbi-investigated-susan-collins-defense-contractor-donations
FBI Eyed Susan Collins Over Defense Contractor's Donations
REL_TIME: 25 Sep 2026 00:12Z · LANG: EN
An investigative report by ProPublica revealed that the FBI's anti-corruption unit extensively investigated Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) over potential pay-to-play schemes involving defense contractor Navatek and its former CEO, Martin Kao. Kao, convicted of illegal campaign contributions and fraud, told federal agents that his company traded cash for millions in federal defense contracts secured through Collins' office and her super PAC. Although federal investigators gathered significant evidence and sought to expand the probe into a broader congressional bribery investigation, the inquiry was ultimately shuttered following personnel purges at the Justice Department after Donald Trump returned to office. Collins and her staff have vigorously denied all allegations of bribery or wrongdoing, pointing out that her campaign previously disgorged illegal contributions and fully cooperated with initial 2021 federal inquiries.
// Background
Navatek, a Hawaiian defense contractor later renamed Martin Defense Group and subsequently PacMar, shifted its strategy after the death of its congressional benefactor Sen. Daniel Inouye and the ban on earmarks. Under CEO Martin Kao, the company utilized a playbook of targeting members of the House and Senate appropriations committees—such as Senator Susan Collins—by funding local academic projects and channeling hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal and illegal campaign contributions to secure tailored defense contracts.
// Key Developments
- In 2024, the FBI sought to launch a sweeping pay-to-play investigation examining interactions between Sen. Susan Collins and top donor Martin Kao.
- Kao confessed to federal agents that his defense contractor firm, Navatek, won millions in federal contracts by bankrolling campaigns of powerful politicians, including Collins.
- After pleading guilty to campaign finance and fraud charges in 2022, Kao detailed a sprawling operation involving dozens of lobbyists and lawmakers.
- A broader investigation into congressional bribery was stalled and eventually closed following the return of Donald Trump to the White House and the subsequent purge of FBI anti-corruption units.
- Sen. Susan Collins' campaign and staff have strongly denied all allegations, calling Kao's claims outlandish and noting that the FBI previously stated it found nothing implicating the senator.
// Timeline
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Martin Kao meets Sen. Susan Collins and makes initial campaign donations shortly before Collins includes an $8 million research grant for Navatek in the defense budget.
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Navatek executives, including Martin Kao, meet with Collins' super PAC director Scott Reed at a Washington D.C. Corner Bakery, arranging a $500,000 donation funneled through an LLC shell company.
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Following a Campaign Legal Center FEC complaint and investigative reporting, law enforcement raids Navatek's offices and arrests Martin Kao for fraud and illegal campaign contributions.
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Kao pleads guilty to campaign finance and loan fraud crimes, subsequently beginning a series of cooperation interviews with the FBI detailing political pay-to-play operations.
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FBI anti-corruption agents compile sufficient evidence based on Kao's confessions and records to request approval for a sweeping congressional bribery probe.
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Following Donald Trump's return to the presidency, anti-corruption unit agents handling the case are purged and the broader investigation is effectively shut down.
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ProPublica publishes its investigative piece revealing the hidden FBI inquiry into Susan Collins, sparking widespread political reactions during Collins' tight reelection campaign.
// Perspectives
[Sen. Susan Collins and Campaign]
Vigorously denies all bribery and pay-to-play allegations, maintaining that the campaign was never an FBI target, cooperated fully with past inquiries, and discarded illegal donations immediately upon discovery in 2021.
[ProPublica and Investigative Reporters]
Asserts that evidence, internal emails, and detailed confessions from Martin Kao independently corroborate a quid pro quo arrangement connecting federal defense appropriations to illegal campaign donations.
[Federal Bureau of Investigation / Trump Administration]
Official agency statements maintain that investigations years ago found no evidence implicating Senator Collins or her campaign, while critics and former officials note that the broader probe was cut short due to DOJ and FBI leadership changes.
// Quotes
“The fact that the FBI and Biden-led Department of Justice thoroughly examined the Navatek matter demonstrates this. These issues were resolved in 2021 and concluded when the Collins campaign disgorged the illegal contributions that Martin Kao had made without our knowledge.”
“Oh my God, all of it is for sale. It’s all for sale.”
“I never had any communications with Senator Collins [or] her staff about Martin Kao and/or Navatek.”
