A 65-year-old Las Vegas man has admitted he helped tilt the playing field on U.S. Air Force contracts, quietly steering more than $1.8 million in work through a bid-rigging scheme that touched both Nellis Air Force Base and Moody Air Force Base.
Scott G. Srodes pleaded guilty Tuesday to two felony counts after acknowledging he conspired with others to rig bids on projects involving shelving, maintenance and healthcare-related procurements at Air Force facilities. Federal prosecutors say the contracts were pegged to work on aircraft maintenance and medical facilities.
According to the Justice Department, Srodes admitted in open court that he and his co-conspirators exchanged pricing information before bids went in and, at times, even told each other what numbers to use. The projects were funded through the Defense Logistics Agency’s Facilities Maintenance, Repair, and Operations program and involved shelving and storage work across those military sites.
As reported by FOX5, Srodes was a former employee of a shelving and storage distributor and admitted the scheme in court filings. Investigators say the group coordinated collusive bids for work at Nellis in Las Vegas and Moody in Valdosta, Georgia, with the combined value of those projects exceeding $1.8 million.
How Investigators Say The Scheme Worked
Prosecutors say the conspirators did not leave the bidding process to chance. Instead, they allegedly coordinated who would come in with the lowest price and shared competitively sensitive information to make the bids look legitimate on paper while quietly fixing the outcome.
"America’s warfighters deserve the best healthcare, and bid rigging that distorts healthcare procurement deprives them of free and fair competition," Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Daniel W. Glad said in a statement from the Justice Department. In other words, this is exactly the kind of behind-the-scenes coordination taxpayers are not signing up for.
Penalties And Next Steps
Prosecutors say the conspiracy to rig bids under the Sherman Act carries a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine. A separate conspiracy to defraud the United States charge can add up to five years behind bars and a $250,000 fine.
A federal judge will ultimately decide Srodes’ sentence after weighing the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. No sentencing date has been set, according to investigators cited in court filings reported by FOX5.
The guilty plea follows an earlier admission of guilt in a related procurement case and highlights a broader federal push against collusion on military contracts. As noted by Concurrences, the Antitrust Division and the Justice Department’s Procurement Collusion Strike Force have recently secured other pleas and brought charges tied to DLA contracts, signaling that bidders on military facilities can expect sustained scrutiny.
