A military contractor pleaded guilty in court to rigging bids for public contracts in the states of Texas and Michigan.
John "Mark" Leveritt, 62, admitted to rigging bids for government contracts May 2013 through April 2018, according to a July 14 Department of Justice news release. In an attempt to create the appearance of competition and obtain government payments totaling more than $17.5 million, the defendant allegedly schemed with others to rig bids on a number of government contracts.
“U.S. taxpayers deserve to know that the government contracting process is not subverted through collusion," Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter said in the release. "Bid rigging undermines the competitive process, wastes taxpayer dollars and deprives businesses that follow the rules of the right to fair competition. Investigating and prosecuting this case and others involving government contracting is a top priority for the Department of Justice and all members of the Procurement Collusion Strike Force.”
“The United States government offers many economic opportunities to the free market for fair contracts and the welcomed employment of many people" U.S. Attorney Brit Featherston of the Eastern District of Texas said, according to the release. "When thieves take advantage of the taxpayer and of those persons trying to compete fairly for contracts, their felonious acts undermine the confidence built into the contracting process.”
“Rigging bids undermines the benefits of competition and takes money out of the pockets of taxpayers" Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division said in the release. "The public deserves a level playing field when doing business with the government. The FBI, hand in hand with our law enforcement partners, will continue to investigate those who corrupt the systems established to protect American citizens from this type of fraud.”
