承包商 Ilya Zagaryuk 认罪：支付逾46.5万美元邮政合同回扣，同意赔偿 $465,347.75，面临最高5年监禁
美国司法部10月27日宣布，俄勒冈州 Damascus 居民、承包商 Ilya Zagaryuk（40岁）已就共谋侵害美国一罪认罪，承认在2022年5月至2024年2月期间，为承揽美国邮政（USPS）设施维修工程，向一名总承包商雇员支付逾46.5万美元回扣，并同意向邮政支付赔偿 $465,347.75。
据法庭文件，Zagaryuk 拥有的公司在俄勒冈、爱达荷、怀俄明、蒙大拿与华盛顿五州承揽、转包数十处邮政设施的维修工程。他向总承包商的雇员支付回扣，以换取对方把更多工程交给自己的公司；共谋者故意抬高包括估价单与发票在内的承包文件，把回扣金额塞进合同款项，与实际维修成本无关。
“在政府合同中做回扣手脚的犯罪分子，侵蚀公众对政府机构的信任，必将被追究责任，”司法部官员表示。加州东区联邦检察官 Eric Grant 说，保护纳税人与联邦机构资金是其办公室的核心使命，此类骗局耗损公共资源、损害公众对联邦资金使用方式的信心。美国邮政监察长办公室执行特别探员主管 Kevin Cloninger 表示，该办公室将继续严查意图欺诈邮政采购程序的公司。
Zagaryuk 认罪的罪名为共谋侵害美国（共谋支付回扣），最高可判5年监禁并处罚款最高25万美元；其同意支付的 $465,347.75 赔偿与同案被告承担连带责任。量刑将由联邦地区法院法官结合《量刑指南》与其他法定因素裁定。本案由美国邮政监察长办公室与联邦调查局萨克拉门托办事处调查，司法部反垄断司旧金山办公室与加州东区联邦检察官办公室负责起诉。
Contractor Ilya Zagaryuk Pleads Guilty to Paying Over $465,000 in Kickbacks on U.S. Postal Service Repair Contracts
The Justice Department announced on Oct. 27 that Ilya Zagaryuk, 40, of Damascus, Oregon, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, admitting that from May 2022 to February 2024 he paid more than $465,000 in kickbacks to steer U.S. Postal Service (USPS) facilities repair work to his company, and agreed to pay $465,347.75 in restitution to the Postal Service.
According to court documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California in Sacramento, Zagaryuk's company contracted and subcontracted on repair work for dozens of Postal Service sites in Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana and Washington. He paid a co-conspirator — an employee of a prime contractor on Postal Service projects — to steer additional work to his company, and the co-conspirators intentionally inflated contracting documents, including estimates and invoices, to include funds for the kickbacks that were not tied to legitimate repair costs.
“Protecting taxpayers and federal-agency dollars is central to our mission,” said U.S. Attorney Eric Grant for the Eastern District of California. Executive Special Agent in Charge Kevin Cloninger of the USPS Office of Inspector General said the office will continue to aggressively investigate companies that defraud the Postal Service's contracting process.
Zagaryuk faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. The restitution of $465,347.75 is jointly and severally liable with co-defendants. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. The USPS Office of Inspector General and the FBI Sacramento Field Office investigated the case; the Antitrust Division's San Francisco Office and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of California are prosecuting.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：美国邮政（USPS）邮车。公共领域（PD），来源：Wikimedia Commons / Photo: A U.S. Postal Service mail truck. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
