WASHINGTON D.C.
A former contract manager for the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) plead guilty Monday for his role in a bid-rigging and bribery scheme, federal officials stated.
The scheme involved Caltrans improvement and repair contracts.
According to a plea agreement filed Monday in federal court in Sacramento, Choon Foo “Keith” Yong and his co-conspirators engaged in a conspiracy, from early 2015 through late 2019, to thwart the competitive bidding process for Caltrans contracts.
This conspiracy would ensure that companies controlled by Yong’s co-conspirators submitted the winning bid and would be awarded the contract.
Yong is also charged with accepting bribes while working for Caltrans, a California state agency that receives significant federal funding.
Yong received bribes in the form of cash payments, wine, furniture, and remodeling services on his home, according to officials.
The total value of the payments and benefits Yong received exceeded $800,000. In addition to his guilty plea, Yong agreed to pay restitution and cooperate with the ongoing investigation.
“Today’s guilty plea is the first in the Antitrust Division’s ongoing investigation into bribery and bid rigging at Caltrans,” said Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “Given the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act’s $1.2 trillion authorization and the critical role of transportation infrastructure in our nation, rooting out bid-rigging schemes that cheat the competitive bidding process remains a top priority for the division and its Procurement Collusion Strike Force partners.”
Yong is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 22. Yong is facing a lengthy prison sentence.
In November 2019, the Department of Justice created the Procurement Collusion Strike Force (PCSF), a joint law enforcement effort to combat antitrust crimes and related fraudulent schemes that impact government procurement, grant and program funding at all levels of government – federal, state and local.