Louisiana Company Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Defraud the Government and Violate the Procurement Integrity Act

According to admissions made in connection with its guilty plea, CAJAN WELDING & RENTALS, LTD. conspired with unnamed co-conspirators to defraud the United States by corrupting and impairing the government procurement process, and by obtaining non-public pricing and cost information in order to obtain subcontract awards and payments from the U.S. Department of Energy in connection with its operation of the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve. 

“Fraud, regardless of its scope and means of orchestration, is a serious crime. Especially egregious is fraud committed against the hardworking taxpayer, said U.S. Attorney of the Eastern District of Louisiana Peter G. Strasser.”  This guilty plea sends a clear message that our office will vigorously investigate and prosecute all such corruption cases.

“Today’s guilty plea demonstrates that corruption of the bidding process for a vital federal program like the Strategic Petroleum Reserve will not be tolerated.  The Justice Department is committed to investigate and prosecute collusion that impacts government procurement to the fullest extent of the law,” said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division.  “The Antitrust Division will remain vigilant in protecting taxpayer funds through competition, and will continue to work with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners to safeguard the federal procurement process.”

“The Department of Energy Office of Inspector General remains committed to ensuring the integrity of the Department's contractors and subcontractors,” said Teri L. Donaldson, Department of Energy Inspector General. “We take allegations of procurement integrity violations very seriously and will aggressively investigate these matters to protect the Department and the American taxpayers. “We appreciate the efforts of the DOJ in pursuing these allegations and will continue our collaboration with the DOJ to investigate those who seek to defraud Department programs.”

                                                                                           *   *   *