A San Antonio businessman has copped to bribery, in a scheme that funneled $100,000 into the pockets of a corrupt Veterans Administration official, in exchange for a $4 million slice of federal contracts. Javor McCoy, 42, owner of Ready 2 Go Transport Central LLC, admitted to the under-the-table dealings after officials uncovered he doled out hefty kickbacks to a contracting officer at the VA, to grease the wheels for his transportation business that serves veterans.
It's a tale of greed and betrayal, punctuated by stacks of cash stashed in gym lockers. McCoy's contact was none other than Glenn Dartone Johnson, 49, a VA official who abused his supervisory authority to tip the scales in McCoy’s favor, the ExpressNews reported. The money exchanged hands at an AnyTime Fitness in San Antonio, where Johnson retrieved the bribery payments, after McCoy had strategically placed them there.
Johnson was more than a middleman; he was an active player in this deceitful game, crafting the official bidding criteria to align seamlessly with what McCoy's company could offer. "In the summer of 2021, McCoy agreed to hire a 'consultant' identified by Johnson to help McCoy win bids for VA transportation contracts," according to the ExpressNews. In a flagrant misuse of his role, Johnson even shunned recommendations from his team, compelling a subordinate to declare R2G Central as the top pick for the lucrative wheelchair contract.
The contracts at the core of this corruption amounted to nearly $4 million — with $1.4 million for ambulance services, and $2.6 million earmarked for wheelchair transportation. McCoy, stamped and packaged as a service-disabled veteran-owned small business owner, had sealed the deal; only to later plead guilty, to conspiracy to commit bribery and fraud — the latter for attempting to dodge a civil court appearance in Dallas with counterfeit documents.
Caught in the act by the FBI and VA's Inspector General, Johnson pleaded guilty on Dec. 20, while McCoy's confession came later, according to federal prosecutors. Johnson's attorney, Michael McCrum, shed a lenient light on his client's actions, stating, "Glenn made an error in judgment as to one part of the bid process for which he is taking full responsibility, but it didn’t cost the government any more money that it wasn’t going to spend anyway," as reported by the ExpressNews. The admonitions, however, ring hollow against the echoes of betrayal in the hollowed halls of veterans' care.
