James, 51, of Texas, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, bribery, and conspiracy to rig bids in connection with the scheme that ran from April 2016 to April 2025. He agreed to pay over $1.4 million in restitution to the Department of Defense.
According to court documents, James and co-conspirators falsely inflated the cost of IT contracts serving U.S. Air Force installations across the Pacific. The conspirators used diverted government funds to enrich themselves and pay bribes to a federal public official in the Pacific Air Forces whom they nicknamed "Godfather."
The scheme included directing supposed competitors on bid amounts to circumvent the competitive bidding process. Conspirators used diverted government funds to pay for luxury accommodations, including an all-expenses-paid multi-day stay at a resort on Oahu's North Shore in 2023.
James 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, potentially increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice victim losses if either exceeds statutory maximums.
"Over thirty-seven million dollars — that's how much the U.S. Air Force overpaid because of the scheme that the defendant admitted to, under oath and in open court," said Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Daniel Glad of the Justice Department's Antitrust Division.
"Through this bid-rigging scheme, the defendant not only stole from American taxpayers and harmed companies seeking to compete honestly for government contracts, he also ultimately harmed essential military services designed to keep our nation safe by diverting resources away from other services," said U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson for the District of Hawaii.
The case was prosecuted by the Justice Department's Antitrust Division's San Francisco Office and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Hawaii as part of the Procurement Collusion Strike Force. The investigation involved multiple agencies including the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General's Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Air Force Office of Special Investigations, and the General Services Administration's Office of Inspector General.