Construction Company Owner Charged with Illegally Obtaining Contracts by Using Minority Business’ Name and Registration

PITTSBURGH - A Washington County resident has been indicted by federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

The 14–count indictment, returned on Nov. 17, named Donald R. Taylor, 76, of Eighty Four, Pa., as the sole defendant.

The indictment charges that from in and around January 2012 and continuing thereafter to in and around February 2014, Taylor and persons and entities known and unknown to the United States Attorney, conspired to defraud the United States, engaged in wire and mail fraud, and engaged in money laundering. The indictment alleges that Taylor was the owner and operator of Century Steel Erectors (CSE) a construction company based in the Western District of Pennsylvania. According to the indictment, CSE used the name and registering information of another company, West Mifflin Construction Company (WMCC), to obtain contracts for services. WMCC is a certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) and as such CSE (a non-DBE) was not permitted to use WMCC's DBE status in order to obtain contracts for work.

The law provides for a total sentence of not more than 215 years in prison, a fine of $300,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant United States Attorneys Robert S. Cessar and Jonathan B. Ortiz are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Department of Transportation, Office of Inspector General and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Donald R. Taylor.