Caddy admitted to participating in a bid-rigging scheme targeting multiple healthcare-related projects at Moody Air Force Base in Valdosta, Georgia, including the Medical Logistics Warehouse Project, Pharmacy Modernization and Renovation Project, Veterinary Clinic Project, and Dental Lab Clinic Project. The projects were funded through the Defense Logistics Agency's Facilities Maintenance, Repair, and Operations Program and totaled more than $1.6 million.
According to court documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia, Caddy and his co-conspirators submitted collusive bids for the shelving and storage products needed for the healthcare facilities. One co-conspirator instructed Caddy to submit intentionally higher prices and provided him with specific pricing to include on bids. To conceal the scheme from the government, Caddy "re-wrote" certain bid forms "in [his] own handwriting" before transmitting them to a prime vendor, which then submitted the collusive bids to the Department of Defense.
Caddy faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine for the Sherman Act conspiracy charge, and five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for conspiracy to defraud the United States. Fines may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the victim's loss if either amount exceeds the statutory maximum. Sentencing is scheduled for June 25.
The guilty plea marks the first conviction in an ongoing investigation into bid rigging and fraud impacting U.S. military facilities nationwide. The case is part of the broader work of the Justice Department's Procurement Collusion Strike Force, which targets anticompetitive conduct affecting government spending at all levels.
"Defending free and fair competition in healthcare spending is a critical priority for the Antitrust Division, particularly when it affects the U.S. military," said Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Daniel Glad. "The Antitrust Division's Procurement Collusion Strike Force and its partners will continue to find and prosecute those who corrupt the competitive process and increase healthcare-related costs in the United States."
"Bid rigging involving military healthcare contracts isn't just illegal, it's a direct betrayal of the service members and their families who rely on these facilities," said Special Agent-in-Charge Jason Sargenski of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service Southeast Field Office. U.S. Attorney William R. "Will" Keyes for the Middle District of Georgia added that "bid rigging harms taxpayers, honest contractors and all of us who play by the rules."
The investigation was conducted by the Antitrust Division's Washington Criminal Section, Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and Defense Logistics Agency Office of Inspector General. The case demonstrates the government's continued focus on protecting the integrity of defense procurement processes, particularly those affecting military healthcare infrastructure critical to service member welfare.