On March 8, 2010, Lawrence A. Veres, owner of Hose-Mart Incorporated, was convicted of violating Title 18 USC 1001, False Statements. The Honorable Gary Allen Feess, U. S. District Court Judge, U.S. District Court, Central District of California, Los Angeles, CA, accepted Veres' guilty plea, sentenced him to six months probation, and ordered him to pay an $1800 fine.
This investigation was initiated based on information developed during a previous investigation by General Services Administration (GSA), Office of Inspector General (OIG), Western Regional Investigations. During the investigation of GSA vendor BJC Sales, Incorporated, it was revealed that the subject of that investigation conspired with Hose-Mart, and its owner, Lawrence A. Veres, to provide inferior products to GSA under several GSA Multiple Award Schedule contracts via product substitution. Then, during an investigation by Defense Criminal Investigative Service and GSA OIG into Hose-Mart , evidence indicated that Veres knowingly made a false and material statement to the United States Government regarding his knowledge of the identity of Silver.
The matter was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence S. Middleton, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Central District of California, Los Angeles, CA.
