Alan Hayward James, 51, of Texas, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, bribery, and conspiracy to rig bids, the Justice Department's Antitrust Division announced. The charged conduct ran from April 2016 through April 2025.
According to the department, James and his co-conspirators directed purported competitors on the amounts they should bid, circumventing the competitive bidding process on IT contracts tied to Pacific Air Forces installations. The agency said the inflated contract costs were used to pay James, members of his family, the family of an Air Force civilian employee, and others.
The scheme also involved diverting government funds to pay for an all-expenses-paid multi-day stay at a luxury resort on Oahu's North Shore in 2023, according to the department. The plea agreement and information were filed in U.S. District Court in Honolulu.
James agreed to pay at least $1,451,656.80 in restitution to the U.S. Department of War, the release said. He faces maximum penalties of 20 years in prison for wire fraud conspiracy, 15 years for bribery, and 10 years for Sherman Act bid-rigging conspiracy. Fines could reach $250,000 to $1 million per count, or double the gain or victim losses if those amounts exceed the statutory maximums.
"Criminals who rig bids and commit fraud on government contracts steal from taxpayers and threaten the public's confidence in government institutions," Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Daniel Glad said.
U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson for the District of Hawaii said that "Bid-rigging and anti-competitive behavior in government contracts erodes trust in our institutions, harms taxpayers, and will not be tolerated."
The case was prosecuted by the Justice Department's Procurement Collusion Strike Force, working with the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General's Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, and the General Services Administration's Office of Inspector General. Sentencing will be determined by a federal district judge considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.