Last week a jury in Harrisburg,
Pennsylvania convicted Joseph W. Nagle, former president and CEO of Schuylkill
Products and CDS Engineering, suppliers of prestressed concrete products for
highway construction, of 28 counts of fraudulent conduct for a 15 year scheme
defrauding U. S. taxpayers, PennDOT and SEPTA by using Connecticut based
certified DBE Marikina Construction as a front on more than 300 federally
funded PennDOT and SEPTA projects from 1993 through 2008. The verdicts,
returned April 5, found Nagle, of Deerfield Beach, Florida, guilty of 11 counts
of wire fraud, 11 counts of money laundering and six counts of mail fraud,
following prosecution arguments that Schuylkill and CDS prepared project bids
on Marikina letterhead, put Markinia’s magnetic plackards on Schuylkill work
vehicles, and prepared phony payroll and vehicle lease records to conceal the
fact the work was performed by Schuylkill and CDS rather than Marikina.
Assistant U. S. Attorney Bruce
Brandler argued to the trial judge that “In essence, Schuylkill Products and
CDS rented Marikina’s name.” Marikina received payments under the contracts,
part of which were kicked back to Schuylkill executives in the scheme. Romeo P.
Cruz, owner of Marikina, previously pleaded guilty to chrges in connection with
the 15 year DBE fraud, along with three middle managers at Schuylkill.
According to Middle District of Pennsylvania U. S. Attorney Peter J. Smith, the
scheme, involving more than $136 million in government contracts, is the
largest DBE fraud case in U. S. history. When he is sentenced, Nagle will be
facing up to 330 years of imprisonment and $250,000.00 in fines, plus
restitution on each fraudulent project.
