Investigations

On January 24, 2020, in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, a jury found Mark F. Spindler guilty of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud in a complex Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) fraud scheme. Spindler is the owner of Komisar & Spindler, an accounting firm in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin.

 

On May 1, 2018, the U.S. Attorney’s Office filed a superseding indictment in the same court charging Spindler with conspiracy to defraud the United States and misprision of a felony; Nuvo Construction Company, Inc. (Nuvo) with conspiracy, wire fraud, mail fraud, and aiding and abetting; and co-conspirator Brian Ganos with two charges of mail fraud.

 

A prior indictment stated that, to qualify for Federal programs, Ganos operated and controlled multiple companies with straw owners, which gave him access to Government contracts for which he was not qualified. Nuvo was certified as a DBE and listed as owned and operated by Jorge Lopez; however, Ganos allegedly ran and controlled the company. Ganos used Nuvo’s DBE status for Sonag Company, Inc. (Sonag), which was not DBE qualified, to secure Government contracts. According to the indictment, Ganos conspired with Sonag, Nuvo, and others to conceal the nature, source, and location of the fraud proceeds, and Ganos and others consulted with Spindler to conduct bookkeeping, accounting, and payroll procedures that facilitated and concealed the scheme.

 

DOT-OIG conducted this investigation with the FBI, VA-OIG, Small Business Administration OIG, General Services Administration OIG, Army Criminal Investigation Division, and Department of Defense OIG.