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On June 17, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania sentenced John Joseph, Gavin Rexer, Joseph Powell, Dennis Paulhamus, and Timothy Sweitzer each to 1 year probation and a $100 assessment for conspiring to defraud the United States and violating the Clean Air Act. Joseph, Rexer, and Powell were also sentenced to 50 hours of community service; Paulhamus received a $15,000 fine, and Sweitzer was fined $10,000. Rexer, Powell, and Joseph were employed by Rockwater Northeast LLC (Rockwater), a company that serviced the fracking industry.
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06.30.2021
On June 15, 2021, Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Company, LLC (Great Lakes), pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana to one count of violating the Clean Water Act. According to the information, in September 2016, Great Lakes discharged a harmful quantity of oil into a navigable water of the United States and on adjoining shorelines, affecting U.S. natural resources. The spill took place on the edge of Bay Long near Chenier Ronquille Barrier Island, Louisiana.
 
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06.29.2021
On June 7, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina sentenced Contech Engineered Solutions, LLC, an engineering firm, to $1,533,988 in restitution, a $7 million fine, and a $800 court assessment. On May 11, Contech pleaded guilty to bid rigging and conspiracy to commit fraud. The investigation revealed that Contech conspired for nearly a decade to rig bids for aluminum structure projects that facilitate drainage underneath or around paved roads, bridges, and overpasses. DOT and the North Carolina Department of Transportation funded these projects.
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06.29.2021
On June 9, 2021, a grand jury in the Middle District of Georgia indicted Dereen and Curtis Porch for wire fraud and theft of government property. The indictment alleges that the individuals devised a scheme to defraud the Small Business Administration (SBA) using false statements and fraudulent pretenses related to a loan/grant request under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The Porches allegedly submitted loan/grant applications on behalf of sham transportation companies in an attempt to steal approximately $364,200 from SBA.
 
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06.23.2021
On June 8, 2021, a grand jury in the Southern District of Florida indicted Cole Allan Peacock for making false statements to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). According to the indictment, in July 2019, Peacock made the false statements on an application for an FAA Student Pilot Certificate. Although Peacock had previously been convicted of multiple criminal felony offenses, the application did not disclose that criminal record.
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06.22.2021
On June 3, 2021, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota and the Attorney General’s Office for the State of Minnesota entered into a civil settlement with Mark Sand & Gravel Company (MSG). MSG agreed to pay $1.75 million—$1,328,250 to the United States and $421,750 to the State of Minnesota. Between 2013 and 2015, MSG allegedly violated the Federal and the Minnesota False Claims Acts by using unauthorized gravel materials on several federally funded road construction projects administered by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MNDOT).
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06.22.2021
On March 30, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri sentenced Jwan Curry to 3 years’ probation, $49,176 in restitution to Alaskan Airlines, and a $100 special assessment. On November 3, 2020, Curry was convicted of simple assault within the territorial and maritime jurisdiction of the United States. According to the plea agreement, Curry admitted to threatening a flight attendant with physical violence, as well as the lives of all passengers on board a September 26, 2019, Alaska Airlines flight.
 
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06.17.2021
On June 2 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York convicted and sentenced Lamont Brown to time served, $97,207 in restitution, 250 hours of community service, 3 years of supervised release, and a $100 court assessment. On October 10, 2019, Brown pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
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06.16.2021
On June 1, 2021, a consent judgment order and stipulation and settlement order were entered in the Southern District of New York against Naughton Energy Corporation (Naughton) and its owners, Mariette Naughton and Joseph Naughton (the defendants). The judgment against the defendants ordered a total of $3,273,600 to be awarded to the United States.
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06.16.2021