U.S. Department
of Justice
Information
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| MJL:ALB:PE Filed: 02/22/2007 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
THE UNITED STATES CHARGES: INTRODUCTION At all times relevant to this Information, unless otherwise indicated: 1. The defendant Thomas Cunningham was the vice-president of Total Industrial & Packaging ("TIP"). 2. TIP was an entity organized and existing under the laws of Pennsylvania with its principal place of business in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania. TIP was a provider of metal sling hoist assemblies to the United States Navy. 3. A "metal sling hoist assembly" is a wire rope basket-type sling consisting of swaged legs on both free ends and two tensioning latches, which is used to hold items to be transported, such as bombs and other munitions. Metal sling hoist assemblies are used in some form by all branches of the military and, in particular, they are frequently used by the Navy onboard aircraft carriers to transport missiles or bombs from where those weapons are stored to the planes or helicopters that will carry them. Cunningham and his co-conspirators were engaged in manufacturing and selling metal sling hoist assemblies to the U.S. Navy. 4. Various corporations and individuals, not made defendants in this Information, participated as co-conspirators in the offense charged herein and performed acts and made statements in furtherance thereof. SHERMAN ACT CONSPIRACY 5. Beginning at least as early as August of 2003 and continuing until as late as January of 2004, the exact dates being unknown to the United States, the defendant and co-conspirators entered into and engaged in a combination and conspiracy to suppress and eliminate competition by agreeing to submit non-competitive bids to the United States Navy on contracts for metal sling hoist assemblies. The combination and conspiracy engaged in by the defendant and co-conspirators was in unreasonable restraint of interstate trade and commerce in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act (Title 15, U.S.C., § 1). 6. The charged combination and conspiracy consisted of an agreement, understanding and concert of action among the defendant and co-conspirators, the substantial terms of which were to rig bids on contracts for metal sling hoist assemblies sold to the United States Navy for the purpose of raising the price paid by the Department of Defense for the metal sling hoist assemblies. The combination and conspiracy was carried out, in part, within the Eastern District of New York within the five years preceding the filing of this Information. 7. For the purpose of forming and carrying out the charged combination and conspiracy, Cunningham and the co-conspirators did those things that they combined and conspired to do, including, among other things:
THE CONSPIRACY'S EFFECT ON INTERSTATE COMMERCE 8. During the period covered by this Information, metal hoist sling assemblies sold by one or more of the co-conspirator firms, and equipment and supplies necessary to the production and distribution of metal sling hoist assemblies, as well as payments for metal sling hoist assemblies and necessary supplies, traveled in interstate commerce. 9. During the period covered by this Information, the business activities of Cunningham and his co-conspirators in connection with the production and sale of metal sling hoist assemblies that are the subject of this Information were within the flow of, and substantially affected, interstate trade and commerce. (Title 15, United States Code, Section 1; Title 18, United States Code, Sections 3551 et seq.)
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