A contractor has admitted rigging bids for public military contracts worth $17.5m in the US.
John “Mark” Leveritt, 62, pleaded guilty to rigging bids over a five-year period from at least May 2013 to April 2018.
Leveritt conspired with others on certain government contracts to “give the false impression of competition” and secure payments in excess of $17.5m, according to the US Department of Justice (DoJ).
A plea agreement detailed seven contracting bids that Leveritt and his co-conspirators rigged, including contracts for the Red River Army Depot in Texarkana and the US Contracting Command in Warren, Michigan.
Leveritt also admitted falsely representing himself to be an employee of a business so he could win government contracts set aside for businesses owned and operated by certain categories of minority, disadvantaged or disabled persons.
He also admitted providing a government employee with:
• Tickets to a 2011 World Series game;
• Tickets to two college football games;
• Two expenses-paid family holidays to Las Vegas;
• Donations to youth sports teams coached by the government employee;
• Approximately 100 meals at restaurants.
Leveritt pleaded guilty to violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1m fine.
Assistant attorney general Jonathan Kanter, of the DoJ’s Antitrust Division, said: “US taxpayers deserve to know that the government contracting process is not subverted through collusion.
“Bid rigging undermines the competitive process, wastes taxpayer dollars and deprives businesses that follow the rules of the right to fair competition. Investigating and prosecuting this case and others involving government contracting is a top priority for the Department of Justice and all members of the Procurement Collusion Strike Force.”
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