Source: United States Department of Justice
First Two Defendants Sentenced in Investigation in the Insulation Contracting Industry
Thomas F. Langan (Langan), the co-owner of North Haven, Connecticut, insulation contracting firm Langan Insulation LLC (Langan Insulation) was sentenced to one year and a day’s imprisonment on Sept. 28 in Bridgeport, Connecticut, for his participation in bid-rigging and fraud schemes targeting public and private entities in Connecticut. Langan Insulation LLC was sentenced to a $150,000 criminal fine for its role in the schemes. Both defendants were also ordered to pay restitution to their victims. These are the first and second sentencings arising out of the investigation into the insulation contracting industry.
According to guilty pleas entered in 2020, the defendants conspired with other insulation contractors to rig bids and engage in fraud on contracts for installing insulation around pipes and ducts on construction projects at universities, hospitals, and other public and private entities in Connecticut. The conspiracy ran for nearly seven years, beginning as early as October 2011 and continuing until as late as March 2018. Five other individuals and companies have pled guilty to criminal conduct arising out of this investigation and await sentencing.
“Today’s sentences reflect the seriousness of offenses that subvert the competitive process and target public and private institutions,” said Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “We will pursue and hold accountable executives and companies who undermine the competitive process for personal gain and corporate greed.”
“As this bid-rigging scheme victimized hospitals, universities, municipalities and businesses throughout Connecticut, the prison term and financial penalties imposed should send a strong message that will deter others from engaging in criminal, anti-competitive behavior,” said U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery for the District of Connecticut. “I thank the FBI, DCIS, and the Antitrust Division for their work in bringing the perpetrators of this brazen scheme to justice.”
“It is imperative that the public we serve understand that the FBI and its law enforcement partners will pursue corporate executives that cheat and defraud financial systems designed to ensure fair business practices,” said Special Agent in Charge David Sundberg of the FBI New Haven Field Office. “Today’s sentence is an example of that accountability.”
“Combating anticompetitive practices that undermine the Department of Defense (DoD) procurement system is a top priority of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), the law enforcement arm of the DoD’s Office of Inspector General,” said Special Agent in Charge Patrick J. Hegarty of the DCIS Northeast Field Office. “We will continue to partner with the Department of Justice and the FBI to ensure that the market for construction services provided to the U.S. military remains competitive.”
Langan and Langan Insulation previously pleaded guilty to one count of bid rigging under Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Langan was also ordered to pay a $20,000 criminal fine, restitution in the amount of $480,900, and a special assessment of $200. In addition to its criminal fine, Langan Insulation was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $480,900 and a special assessment of $800.
This investigation is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s New York Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut, the FBI’s New Haven Division and the DCIS’s New Haven Resident Agency.
In November 2019, the Department of Justice created the Procurement Collusion Strike Force, a joint law enforcement effort to combat antitrust crimes and related fraudulent schemes that impact government procurement, grant, and program funding at all levels of government — federal, state and local. To contact the Procurement Collusion Strike Force, or to report information on market allocation, price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct related to construction or infrastructure, go to https://www.justice.gov/procurement-collusion-strike-force.