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United States Attorney Matthew D. Krueger announced that on December 16, 2019, Brian L. Ganos of Muskego, Wisconsin, was sentenced by the Honorable Pamela Pepper to 78 months in federal prison for leading a 12-year fraud scheme involving over $260 million in government-funded contracts intended to benefit small businesses.

A criminal complaint was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging surveillance and security equipment company Aventura Technologies, Inc. (Aventura), located in Commack, New York, and seven current and former employees with selling Chinese-made equipment with known cybersecurity vulnerability to government and private customers while falsely representing that the equipment was made in the United States and concealing that the products were manufactured in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Aventura has generated more than $88 million in sales revenue since November 2010, and the charged scheme has been ongoing since 2006.

Remarks as Prepared for Delivery - Good afternoon. Today I am pleased to announce the establishment of the Procurement Collusion Strike Force, a joint law enforcement effort that will combat antitrust crimes and related fraudulent schemes that impact government procurement, grant, and program funding.

St. Thomas, USVI – United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert for the District of the Virgin Islands announced today that Reinaldo Cruz Taura, president of Puerto Rico-based RCT Mechanical Engineering, pleaded guilty to providing kickbacks in connection with federal government subcontracts to perform work on the federal building and courthouse in St. Croix, VI and on coast guard facilities in Puerto Rico. Taura will be sentenced at a later date.

St. Thomas, USVI – United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert for the District of the Virgin Islands announced today that David Wikel, president of Florida-based Therma-Seal Roof Systems, LLC, pleaded guilty to providing kickbacks in connection with the $1.7 million dollar federal government subcontract to retrofit the roof of the Ron de Lugo Federal Building in St. Thomas, VI.

NEWARK, N.J. - A Nigerian national extradited from Canada will appear in court today for his alleged role in a scheme that defrauded vendors of office products valued at nearly $1 million by “phishing” e-mail login information from government employees, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

A former U.S. Army Reserve employee was sentenced today to 18 months’ imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release on charges of wire fraud and theft of government money as part of a scheme to steal more than $400,000 from the 63rd Regional Support Command at Moffett Field in Mountain View, California.

Igor Yurkovetsky pleaded guilty today in connection with an ongoing investigation into a conspiracy to rig bids submitted to the Government Services Administration (GSA), the Department of Justice announced.

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Bristow, Oklahoma, resident GEORGE PHILLIP TIGER, age 69, entered a guilty plea today to Bribery Concerning Programs Receiving Federal Funds, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 666(a)(1)(B), punishable by not more than 10 years imprisonment, up to a $250,000.00 fine, or both.

The Department of Justice announced today that United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS) has agreed to pay the United States $8.4 million to resolve allegations that it overcharged federal agencies for package delivery services under a General Services Administration (GSA) contract.