Harry Sargeant III Harry Sargeant III ( born December 30 , 1957 ) is a billionaire diversified energy and shipping magnate from Florida . A former officer and fighter pilot in the United States Marine Corps , Sargeant operates an expansive , multi - billion dollar conglomerate of private global enterprises consisting of aviation companies , oil refineries , oil trading operations , alternative fuels development , and oil and asphalt shipping , his Sargeant Marine Group being the largest fleet of asphalt tankers and barges in the world . He is also the owner of International Oil Trading Company ( IOTC ) , a company that supplies aviation fuel to the U . S . Military in Iraq , and grosses billions of dollars annually . Education and Military Service . Graduating from Florida State University in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science in Business , Sargeant entered the Marine Corps attending Basic School after commissioning as a Second Lieutenant , followed by Naval flight school , where he earned his pilot wings in 1981 from Kingsville , Texas . Sargeant then joined the " Black Sheep " , Marine Attack Squadron 214 ( VMA - 214 ) . A fighter squadron steeped in rich history and lore , the " Black Sheep " was the same squadron made famous in World War II , and commanded by Colonel Gregory " Pappy " Boyington . As a fighter pilot , Sargeant ' s mission in the A - 4M Skyhawk was to provide offensive air support , armed reconnaissance , and air - defense for Marine expeditionary forces , and he continued to serve in the Marine Corps Reserves as a pilot , graduating from Navy Fighter Weapons School ( Top Gun ) , and attaining the rank of Major before becoming inactive after 11 years of continual active duty and reserve service . Early Shipping Years and Sargeant Marine . Upon leaving Marine Corps active duty in 1987 , Sargeant joined Delta Air Lines as a line pilot , however soon left Delta to take the helm at Sargeant Marine Inc . a small shipping company his father , Harry Sargeant Sr . , himself a retired Naval Officer , had founded in 1983 . Initially Sargeant focused on the transportation of asphalt products through chartered vessels . In 1989 Sargeant introduced innovations into the international market , such as ISO bitumen containers , that would enable the shipment of his asphalt products to remote destinations worldwide . In 1992 Sargeant began acquiring asphalt tankers in earnest , and within four years he had grown the young company to a fleet of six asphalt tankers , one ocean tug , three ocean barges and several hundred bulk containers . He also purchased and converted the vessel " Asphalt Commander " , which at the time was the largest asphalt tanker in the world at 35 , 000 dead - weight tons . Sargeant continued acquisition of large tankers throughout the remainder of the 1990s and into the next millennium , accumulating a dozen ships by the time of the Iraq War . In a tip of the hat to his alma mater FSU , Sargeant would go on to name one large tanker , a 108 . 5 meter ship , the " Asphalt Seminole . " Business Expansion and IOTC . IOTC Contracts and Iraq War Troop Surge . A major military defense contractor , in 2004 Sargeant ' s International Oil Trading Company ( IOTC ) , a start - up under his guide , won an initial Pentagon contract to supply petroleum to U . S . troops and coalition forces in Iraq after the original contractor failed to perform . Over the course of the next five years IOTC quickly grew to accumulate more than $ 2 . 66 billion awards from the Pentagon to deliver fuel to troops in Iraq . Because of the increasing number of ambushes on fuel convoys running the southern corridor from Kuwait to Baghdad , the Department of Defense required that all fuel and oil supplies bound for northern bases had to transit Jordan and enter Iraq through Al Anbar Province , Ramadi , and on to Baghdad . Through diplomatic skill , a critical letter of authorization was obtained by Sargeant from Jordanian authorities allowing IOTC to transit the country . Subsequent DoD contracts escalated in value year over year as demand for oil and fuels increased for Central Command forces , particularly during the months of the surge of U . S . Forces into Iraq . A Pentagon audit has found that the federal government overpaid Harry Sargeant III by as much as $ 200 million on several military contracts worth nearly $ 2 . 7 billion . The audit by the Defense Department ’ s inspector general , which was posted on the Pentagon ’ s Web site this week , estimated that the department paid the oilman “ $ 160 [ million ] to $ 204 million more for fuel than could be supported by price or cost analysis . ” The study also reported that the three contracts were awarded under conditions that effectively eliminated the other bidders . Rep . Henry A . Waxman ( D - Calif . ) , who led the probe , asserted in a letter to Defense Secretary Robert M . Gates that Sargeant had won the three jet fuel contracts , despite having among the highest bids , because he had an effective monopoly over the routes . Waxman accused Sargeant and his company of price gouging and “ engaging in the worst form of war profiteering . ” Political activities . A longtime major Republican fundraiser and active behind the scenes in Florida politics since the mid - 1990s , Sargeant has had a long standing close relationship with Florida ' s incumbent Governor Charlie Crist , both being Pi Kappa Alpha , ( πΚΑ ) fraternity brothers in the 1970s at Florida State University . Following Crist ' s gubernatorial victory , Crist tapped Sargeant as the state Republican Party ' s Finance Chairman , a non paying post he held until early 2009 . In the 2008 presidential race Sargeant donated to onetime Republican front - runner Rudolph W . Giuliani , Mitt Romney , and eventual Republican nominee Senator John McCain . Crist had been considered as a possible McCain running mate , and is currently running as the Independent candidate for the United States Senate from Florida . Personal life . Harry Sargeant III is married to Deborah Sargeant and they have two children .