Dracut Contractor Pleads Guilty to Bribing Naval Contracting Official in Singapore

BOSTON – A Dracut man pleaded guilty today to bribing a United States Navy contracting officer on two occasions in connection with federal construction projects worth approximately $1 million in Singapore.

Hector Sanchez, 53, pleaded guilty to two counts of bribery of a public official.  U.S. District Court Senior Judge George A. O’Toole, Jr. scheduled sentencing for Sept. 19, 2019.

Sanchez was the President and co-owner of P&S Construction Inc. (P&S), a general contracting corporation headquartered in Chelmsford. In 2016, Sanchez paid a total of $15,000 to a contracting officer of the Naval Facilities Engineering Command Far East in Singapore (NAVFAC Far East) in exchange for the contracting official’s assistance in circumventing the assessment of liquidated damage of more than $69,000 against P&S. In recorded conversations between Sanchez and the Naval contracting officer, Sanchez stated that the liquidated damage assessments would negatively impact P&S’ ability to obtain government contracting work in the future. Subsequently, Sanchez delivered $10,000 in June 2016 and $5,000 in December 2016 to the Naval contracting officer in Singapore while federal agents conducted covert surveillance. During recorded conversations, Sanchez told the contracting official that P&S was “looking for the LDs [liquidated damages] to go away.” Sanchez also stated, “This is the first time we’re doing something, okay? Let’s keep it up … This is not a onetime deal … This is business.”

The charge of bribery of a federal public official provides for a sentence of no greater than 15 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000, or three times the monetary equivalent of the bribe, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Leo S. Lamont, Special Agent in Charge, Naval Criminal Investigative Service, Northeast Field Office, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney William F. Bloomer of Lelling’s Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.