Investigations

On September 21, 2023, in the US District Court for the Western District of New York, general contractor Man O'Trees (MOT) pleaded guilty to an information charging conspiracy to commit mail fraud. According to the information, from approximately May 2009 to 2013, MOT conspired with others to defraud DOT, the New York State DOT, and the City of Niagara Falls, New York—among other governmental entities—to fraudulently obtain money and property. Specifically, MOT conspired to fraudulently secure public works construction contracts by utilizing Sue-Perior Concrete and Paving, Inc., a certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE), to fulfill its DBE percentage goals. Though MOT is not a certified DBE, the company performed the work that Sue-Perior was contracted to perform. The conspiracy impacted various DOT-funded construction projects—valued at over $15 million—including projects funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

 

Additionally, David Pfeiffer, owner and president of MOT, and Thomas Colton, majority owner and president of Sue-Perior, each pleaded guilty to an information charging them with bank larceny in connection with their theft of property and money from a financial institution insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

 

DOT-OIG conducted this investigation with the U.S. Department of Labor OIG.