A company has been urged to pay a $6.5M criminal fine to bring to a close a bid-rigging claim in the Michigan asphalt industry.
Asphalt Specialists LLC pleaded guilty to conspiring with two other construction companies.
Firstly Al’s Asphalt Paving Company Inc. (Al’s Asphalt) and its employees from March 2013 through November 2018. Then F. Allied Construction Company Inc. (Allied) and its employees from July 2017 through May 2021.
“Asphalt Specialist LLC’s sentence reflects the seriousness of conduct that undermines the competitive process,” said Executive Special Agent in Charge Kenneth Cleevely of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) Office of the Inspector General.
Asphalt bid-rigging settled with $6.5m criminal fine
The charges and fines center around coordinated bidding practices, which are a breach of regulations. The three companies have pleaded guilty to pre-planning their bidding processes as a collective, which gave a false impression of fair and honest contract competition.
The tax-paying public was not aware of their deceit, but the governmental watchdogs have cracked down on the companies and their employees to produce the guilty charges.
“The sentence imposed today should serve as a significant deterrent for anyone who chooses corporate greed over open and fair competition for transportation projects,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Anthony Licari Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General (DOT-OIG), Midwestern Region.
The guilty plea is a result of an ongoing federal antitrust investigation and Asphalt Specialists LLC is just one of three companies to be charged.
On July 31, Al’s Asphalt received a fine of $795,661.81 in connection with the investigation efforts. The Justice Department also mentioned that “Allied also pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing. Six individuals also have been charged as part of the investigation.”
“When companies choose to cheat rather than compete, they can expect to pay substantial, punitive criminal fines,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Manish Kumar of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division.
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