Forfeits Nearly $2 Million In Cash, As Well As A Residence And Vehicle

ROOFING COMPANY OWNER PLEADS GUILTY TO CONSPIRING TO SMUGGLE ILLEGAL ALIENS AND INSURANCE FRAUD

DAYTON – Gregory J. Oldiges, 55, the owner of Williams Brothers Roofing and Siding, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to conspiring to bring illegal aliens to work for his roofing company, and to conspiring to commit wire fraud by sending fraudulent invoices to insurance companies for work by his company.

Carter M. Stewart, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Marlon Miller, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations, and Kathy A. Enstrom, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office announced the pleas entered today before U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice.

According to court documents, between 2004 and 2013, Oldiges’ company entered into at least 39 purported subcontracts with illegal aliens to perform roofing services in the Dayton area. Oldigesand/or other Williams Brothers’ employees knew that many of these illegal aliens used aliases or other false names when entering into these subcontracts. In several instances, Williams Brothers’ employees -- with Oldiges’knowledge -- provided the illegal aliens with the false names/aliases to use for the subcontracts (as well as other fraudulent documentation prepared by the company, including false IRS 1099 forms bearing fake names and Social Security numbers). Oldiges also knew and/or directed employees to prepare the necessary fraudulent documentation (including the subcontracting agreements and IRS Forms) in order for the company to be able to write off the illegal aliens’ labor costs on the company’s corporate tax returns.

Between 2009 and 2012, Williams Brothers invoiced its customers approximately $11.75 million for roofing work performed by its illegal workforce, for which Williams Brothers paid the illegal workers approximately $1.7 million.

Oldiges also financed the smuggling of some of the illegal workers into the United States.  For instance, Oldigesdirected a company employee on at least two occasions to go to Texas to give thousands of dollars in cash to an illegal alien subcontractor and to drive the workers back to Dayton, knowing that the money would ultimately be paid to human smugglers or “coyotes” to bring the illegal alien subcontractor and his crew across the border from Mexico into Texas. Oldigesrecouped the cost of the smuggling fees by withholding a portion of the amount Williams Brothers paid the illegal alien subcontractor for work performed on roofing contracts.

Oldiges also pleaded guilty for his involvement in a scheme to defraud insurance providers on roofing jobs by faxing or emailing “dummy” or “duplicate” invoices to insurance companies that reflected inflated invoice amounts over and above the amount the company actually charged its customers. Between approximately November 2010 and December 2012, Oldiges knowingly submitted or caused to be submitted at least 80 fraudulent invoices totaling approximately $1.369 million to various insurance companies when the actual amount that Williams Brothers charged its customers for this work was approximately $1.24 million.

“The schemes perpetuated by this defendant were pervasive, touching nearly every aspect of the business. These unscrupulous tactics clearly gave his company an unfair advantage over competitors,” said Marlon Miller, special agent in charge for HSI Detroit, which covers Michigan and Ohio “When companies engage in these types of schemes, workers are often exploited and businesses that play by the rules simply cannot compete.”

“This case shows that the appearance of success can be a mask for a tangled financial web of lies,” said Kathy A. Enstrom, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office.  “Honest and law abiding citizens are fed up with the likes of those who use deceit and fraud to line their pockets with other people’s money.”

The plea agreement includes a sentencing range of at least 24 months and up to 57 months imprisonment, restitution in an amount to be determined by the court, and forfeiture of real estate, deposit and investment accounts containing nearly $2 million and a vehicle.

Judge Rice scheduled a sentencing hearing for Oldiges for April 8. A Williams Roofing employee, Jim Honius, pleaded guilty on December 19, 2013 to one count of wire fraud for his role in the insurance fraud scheme. He is scheduled for sentencing on April 8.

U.S. Attorney Stewart commended the cooperative investigation by HSI and IRS special agents, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorneys Vipal Patel, Alex Sistla and Pam Stanek, who are prosecuting the case.