VA Contract Specialist Admits Using Government Credit Card to Make $28K in Unauthorized Purchases

PITTSBURGH - A McCandless resident pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of theft of government property, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

Brian R. Kaminski, age 31, pleaded guilty to one count before United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon.

In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that Kaminski was a Contract Specialist employed by the Department of Veteran’s Affairs who was given a Government Purchase Card (a credit card) for use in his duties for those occasions when he needed to make incidental purchases. During the period September through November 2012, Kaminski made a series of 29 unauthorized purchases (in person and online) at four different merchants totaling just over $28,000. Kaminski then took steps to hide what he had done relative to the internal accounting procedures of the VA.

Judge Bissoon scheduled sentencing for Nov. 19, 2015 at 2:15 p.m. The law provides for a total sentence of ten years in prison, a fine of $250,000, 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.

The Department of Veteran Affairs, through the Veterans Affairs Police and the Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Kaminski.