A former federal contracting official from Brandywine, Maryland was sentenced to three years in federal prison Tuesday for running a bribery scheme that funneled General Services Administration construction work to favored companies in exchange for cash, vehicle repairs, and even a sports car. Lennie Lamont Miller, 61, was a GSA contracting officer's representative who used his authority over federal projects between 2018 and 2021 to steer subcontracts to two construction firms whose owners paid him bribes and kickbacks.
U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman handed down the sentence during a hearing in Greenbelt, Maryland. Miller pleaded guilty in January to two federal counts of conspiracy to commit bribery of a federal official, as reported by WBFF. Each count carried a statutory maximum of up to 10 years in prison, as reported by the Southern Maryland Chronicle.
Court filings from January detailed how Miller manipulated the federal procurement process by directly introducing favored subcontractors to prime contractors managing GSA projects, guaranteeing those subcontractors' selection without real competition, according to the Southern Maryland Chronicle. Prosecutors say Miller paired the companies owned by co-conspirators Christopher Brackins and James Tillman with prime contractors identified in court records only as Company B and Company C.
Cash, a Sports Car, and Air-Conditioning Invoices
WBFF reports that Miller conspired with Brackins, 53, of Mount Airy, Maryland, who owned a company doing subcontracting work on GSA projects. The reported benefits from Brackins totaled about $50,000, including cash, checks, vehicle repairs, repairs at a relative's residence, an $8,000 cash payment in 2018 from a fraudulently inflated employee bonus, and a $25,000 payment in 2021 through an intermediary's air-conditioning repair business.
Miller separately conspired with James Tillman, 59, of Washington, D.C., funneling work to Tillman's construction company in exchange for cash, a sports car, and moving expenses for Miller's romantic partner, per the same WBFF account. WBFF also reported that Tillman paid Miller cash and provided a sports car, among other benefits. The arrangement involved Tillman's construction firm.
Brackins provided Miller about $50,000 in money and other value, while Tillman provided additional benefits including cash and a sports car. The GSA Office of Inspector General estimated that Brackins and his firm generated $133,413 in profits from GSA subcontracts secured through the scheme between 2018 and 2021. The office also reported that Brackins provided Miller about $50,000 in money and other value.
Guilty Pleas Reveal Wider Criminal Conduct
Tillman pleaded guilty in February 2025 to conspiracy to commit bribery of a federal public official and is scheduled to be sentenced on October 20, per WBFF. Brackins pleaded guilty in April 2025 to conspiracy to commit bribery, wire fraud, and unlawful possession of a machine gun, with sentencing scheduled for October 22, the station reports.
The GSA inspector general's office noted that Brackins' guilty plea extended beyond public corruption charges, encompassing federal wire fraud for fraudulently obtaining an Economic Injury Disaster Loan and unlawful possession of a machine gun with an obliterated serial number. Brackins owned the firm identified in court records as Company A, a general construction business, according to the Southern Maryland Chronicle.
Multi-Agency Task Force Behind the Investigation
The investigation into the bribery scheme was conducted jointly by the FBI's Baltimore Field Office, the GSA Office of Inspector General, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General.
GSA manages federal properties across the country, and its real estate portfolio exceeds 360 million rentable square feet, according to the U.S. General Services Administration. The agency's nationwide property portfolio underscores the scale of contracting oversight a single official like Miller could exploit before the scheme unraveled.
