Former State DOT Employee Indicted for Federal Program Theft

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Jerome Lauzon, age 44, of Gansevoort, New York, was arraigned today on a charge of misappropriating at least $5,000 from a federally funded program.

The announcement was made by United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith; Douglas Shoemaker, Special Agent in Charge of the Northeast Regional Office of the United States Department of Transportation, Office of Inspector General (USDOT-OIG); New York State Inspector General Catherine Leahy Scott; and Robert L. Keihm, Chief Investigator for the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) Investigations Bureau.

Lauzon, formerly a NYSDOT employee, was the Engineer in Charge of a $10.5 million road reconstruction project in Washington County, New York, from 2012 to 2017.  The Federal Highway Administration, a USDOT agency, provided 80 percent of the funding for the contract. 

According to the indictment, the contractor for the project purchased goods and services for Lauzon’s personal use, and Lauzon unlawfully reimbursed the company for these purchases using project funds.  The charges in the indictment are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Lauzon was arraigned today before United States Magistrate Judge Christian F. Hummel, and was released with conditions pending trial.  If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison, a maximum $250,000 fine, and up to 3 years of post-imprisonment supervised release.  A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.

This case is being investigated by USDOT-OIG, NYSDOT’s Investigations Bureau, and the Office of the New York State Inspector General, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett.