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GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEE IN PITTSBURGH CONVICTED OF FRAUD
Release Date: 02/11/2002
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FOR RELEASE: MONDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2002
Daniel L. Powell, a federal Quality Assurance Representative at the Defense Contract Management office in Pittsburgh, Pa., was convicted of making false claims against the government. When sentenced, he faces a maximum sentence of up to 45-years in prison and/or a fine of up to $2.25 million. Powell performed oversight duties on a U.S. Army contract with Talon Manufacturing Co. Inc., located in Wyoming County, W.V. Powell was assigned to ensure that time fuses from military munitions were properly “demilitarized” and made safe by Talon before being disposed. Instead, Powell entered into an agreement with Talon to accept false certifications from the company on 453,153 fuses, falsely indicating that the munitions had been made safe. The government was then charged $346,630 for services that had not been performed. The government seized approximately 800,000 non-demilitarized fuses from SADCO Recovery Inc., which is owned by the owners of Talon. The fuses were stored in a manner that could have led to an explosion in bunkers at Jumping Branch and Point Pleasant, W.V. The Army will eventually have to spend approximately $2.5 million to make the recovered fuses safe for disposal. EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division and National Enforcement Investigations Center provided investigative assistance to the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the FBI, the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division, the West Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations and the Commission on Special Investigations of the State of West Virginia in the investigation of this case. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charleston, W.V.
R-017 # # #
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