William J. Edwards, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and Elizabeth A. Farcht, Special Agent in Charge of the Eastern Area for the U.S. Postal Service Office of the Inspector General, announced today that an Information has been filed charging Mark C. DeShazier, age 46, of Cleveland Heights, Ohio with one count of Conspiracy to Commit Theft of U.S. Government Property and Misappropriation of Postal Funds.

According to the Information, DeShazier conspired with Ulysses Bradley, the manager of the Vehicle Maintenance Facility (VMF) for the United States Postal Service (USPS) serving the Northern District of Ohio, overseeing local branch offices in Parma, Shaker Heights, Akron, Canton, and Youngstown. As manager of the VMF, Bradley was responsible for approving payments for service and maintenance for all USPS vehicles; Bradley was also responsible for selling used Postal vehicles.

The Information states that DeShazier owned and operated Pierre’s Hand Car Wash (“Pierre’s), a car wash company located in Cleveland Heights, OH. Pierre’s contracted with (under contracts 1DVPMS-04-R-0643 and 1DVPMS-04-R-0644) the Northern Ohio District VMF for the washing and waxing of Postal Service vehicles; these vehicles were Long Life Vehicles (LLVs) and vans used by postal carriers, at individual post offices, for universal mail delivery to each customer. Pierre’s also cleaned trucks/tractor-trailers located at plants within the Northern Ohio District on a non-contract basis; the plants transport outgoing mail from the individual post offices to the plant for processing using trucks/tractor-trailers. The plants used the trucks/tractor-trailers to return processed mail to the appropriate post office.

The Information states that DeShazier prepared fictitious invoices that Bradley approved and submitted to the U.S. Postal Service in order to receive funds for vehicle washing/waxing work which was never performed for the U.S. Postal Service. The Information alleges that DeShazier and Bradley used the names of fictitious companies or third-party companies to prepare and submit fictitious payment requests which were submitted to the U.S. Postal Service in order to receive funds for high-end vehicle maintenance work which was never performed for the U.S. Postal Service. Bradley, using his authority as a Certifying Officer, approved the payments stating the work had been performed when he knew that it had not.

In exchange for his approvals, the Information alleges that Bradley received a cash share (or “kickback”) of the funds the U.S. Postal Service had paid to the listed contractors. In total, the Information alleges that DeShazier submitted fictitious invoices resulting in a loss to the U.S. Postal Service of approximately $190,000.

The Information further alleges that Bradley sold used U.S. Postal Service vehicles to individuals, without putting them up for public auction, in return for a cash “kickback” payment.
Farcht stated: “The Postal Service manages more than $40 billion in contracts for a variety of services. Special Agents with the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Postal Service aggressively investigate allegations of fraud, waste, and misconduct by contractors and Postal employees. When USPS OIG Special Agents uncover contract improprieties during an investigation, we present the evidence to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for criminal prosecution. To report allegations of theft, fraud, or other violations of law, contact the USPS Office of Inspector General at 1-888-USPS-OIG or www.uspsoig.gov.”

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Justin J. Roberts, following an investigation by the Cleveland Office of the United States Postal Service Office of the Inspector General.

An Information is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.