OIG in the News

This press release announces the U.S. Department of Justice’s filing of a proposed amended complaint and consent decree in the District of Maryland with George’s Inc. and George’s Foods LLC (George’s) that would resolve claims that George’s conspired with other poultry processors for years to suppress workers’ wages by exchanging compensation information.

This press release announces that a federal grand jury returned indictments charging two individuals with violations of the Clean Water Act and the Rivers and Harbors Act related to the illegal construction and deposit of material into the wetlands and waters in the area of the Jobos Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve and Las Mareas community of Salinas, Puerto Rico.

This press release announces that Honeywell International Inc. has agreed to pay $3.35 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by selling defective material for bulletproof vests used by law enforcement officers.

This press release announces that James Tassin of Harvey, LA, was sentenced to 2 years’ probation on September 8, 2022, for violating the Clean Water Act in connection with a September 2016 oil spill that occurred when he was a subcontractor on a NOAA wetland restoration project.

This press release announces that a Texas company was ordered to pay a $1 million fine in connection with an oil spill. Commerce OIG participated in the investigation leading to the sentencing.

This press release announces the sentencing for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft related to a fraud scheme perpetuated across multiple government contracts. Commerce OIG participated in the joint investigation that led to the sentencing.

DENVER –The Center for Severe Weather Research (CSWR), a nonprofit organization in Boulder, Colorado, has paid over $2.4 million to resolve allegations that it engaged in fraud related to grants it received from three federal agencies: the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) …

EUGENE, Ore.—A federal government employee who accessed and possessed child pornography while working aboard a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) scientific research vessel was sentenced to federal prison today.

A federal grand jury in Denver, Colorado, returned an indictment yesterday charging Koch Foods, headquartered in Park Ridge, Illinois, for participating in a nationwide conspiracy to fix prices and rig bids for broiler chicken products. Separately, a federal grand jury in Denver returned an indictment charging four executives for their roles in the same conspiracy.

Honeywell International Inc. (Honeywell), headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, has agreed to pay $3.35 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by selling defective material for bullet proof vests used by law enforcement officers, the Justice Department announced today.