The Small Business Administration has blocked the U.S. Agency for International Development from issuing or managing government contracts with small businesses in the wake of a multimillion-dollar bribery scandal uncovered by the Department of Justice.

A USAID contracting officer and three company owners pleaded guilty last month for their roles in a decade-long bribery scheme involving at least 14 prime contracts worth more than $550 million in taxpayer money.

The department said the bribes included cash, laptops, thousands of dollars in tickets to a suite at an NBA game, a country club wedding, down payments on two mortgages, cellphones, and jobs for relatives.

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