Three Florida men were charged on April 12 with conspiring to rig bids for customized promotional products to the U.S. Army.
In court documents, the Department of Justice alleged that Lawrence O’Brien, Bruce LaRoche, and Thomas Dailey exchanged their company’s bid templates and submitted bids to military customers on each other’s behalf in order to eliminate competition among their companies and secure sales for a pre-arranged winner.
Related
“Bid-rigging and fraud schemes targeting the military will not be tolerated – they are an affront to competition and the American taxpayer,” said Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division in a release.
The indictment also alleges that LaRoche participated in a conspiracy to defraud the United States. According to the charge, LaRoche created shell companies, then he or his co-conspirators would submit sham bids from those companies. The bids appeared to be competitive because each listed a different salesperson, price, or product description, despite the fact that all of the bids were drafted by the co-conspirators and the companies were owned or controlled by LaRoche.
Related
The indictment also alleges that O’Brien participated in a conspiracy with his own set of shell companies.
“Bid rigging is not a victimless crime; it cheats taxpayers out of the benefits of competition,” said Special Agent Paul Wachsmuth, director of the Office of Procurement Fraud Investigations, U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, D.C.
All three men are charged with violating the Sherman Antitrust Act. The maximum penalty for that charge is 10 years in prison and a $1 million criminal fine. LaRoche and O’Brien each face separate charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States. The maximum penalty for that charge is five years in prison and a $250,000 criminal fine.
Reach Julia LeDoux at Julia@connectingvets.com.