Tag Archives: procurement fraud

SmallGovCon Week In Review: March 21-25, 2016

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As a Duke alum living in Kansas, March Madness is particularly exciting for me.  Last night, my defending champion Blue Devils got bounced from the tourney, but KU’s journey continues to the Elite Eight.  The win was especially sweet for me because it came against Maryland–a team whose fans (back when the Terps were in the ACC) kept insisting that Duke was their arch-rival.  I lost count of how many times I had to remind a Maryland fan that Duke already has an arch-rival.

While I await Saturday’s basketball excitement, it’s time for our weekly roundup of what’s new in the world of government contracts.  In this week’s SmallGovCon Week In Review, the Navy has been rocked by a bribery scheme, the DoD enlists a supercomputer to untangle its procurement system, some insightful commentary on recent changes to the WOSB program, and much more.

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SmallGovCon Week In Review: March 14-18, 2016

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With much of the country on spring break this week, it has allowed us to slow down a little bit to enjoy the weather and more importantly spend some time working on our March Madness picks. (That Little Rock win was amazing, but blew up my brackets).

So while I no longer have to worry about a perfect bracket, I do have to make sure that the weekend doesn’t arrive without a dose of SmallGovCon Week In Review. This installment looks at alleged procurement fraud in upstate New York, a deeper look at why it took the SBA so long to reach its WOSB contracting goals, a new online database that was launched to help small business gain federal contracts, and much more.

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Procurement Fraud: Couple Pleads Guilty to $30 Million Scheme (And More)

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A Maryland couple has pleaded guilty to defrauding the government in connection with more than $30 million in set-aside contracts.

And, apparently not content with “mere” procurement fraud, the couple has also entered guilty pleas to charges of fraud under the Service Contract Act and tax evasion.

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8(a) Fraud: Guilty Plea In Pass-Through Case

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A California man faces up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to 8(a) fraud charges.

According to a Department of Justice press release, Wesley Burnett admitted that his non-8(a) companies performed all of the work required under various 8(a) set-aside contracts.  And if the pass-through scheme wasn’t enough, Burnett also admitted to falsely self-certifying his companies as SDVOSBs and SDBs, resulting in additional unjustified contract awards.

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SDB Fraud: Subcontractors Pay $1.9 Million Settlement

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Five subcontractors and two individuals have paid the government nearly $1.9 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by falsely representing themselves as small disadvantaged businesses.

According to a Department of Justice press release, the subcontractors self-certified as SDBs to their prime contractors, and those self-certifications were then passed on to the government.

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DOT DBE Fraud: Construction Company Admits False Statements In “Pass-Through” Case

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A Connecticut construction company has agreed to pay more than $2.4 million to resolve fraud claims related to an alleged DOT DBE “pass through” scheme.

According to a DOJ press release, as part of the resolution, the construction company has admitted that it made false statements to the government that a DBE performed more than $3 million in subcontracted work, when in fact, that work was performed by a non-DBE.

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8(a) Fraud: Contractor Fraudulently Obtained $52 Million, Says DOJ

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A Maryland man has pleaded guilty in an 8(a) fraud case involving a company that received more than $52 million in 8(a) contracts to which it was not entitled.

According to a Department of Justice press release, Vernon Smith pleaded guilty to charges that he (not the company’ s disadvantaged majority owner) exercised complete control over the company’s day-to-day management and long term decision making.

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