Former Tyson Foods employee indicted for bid rigging
by March 12, 2012 6:14 pm 239 views
Roger Turney, a former Tyson Foods employee has been accused of rigging a construction bid in 2007 involving Tyson's Clarksville complex.
Turney was indicted on five felony counts in January, according to court records filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas. Bobby Griffith, majority owner of B&W Millwrights.was named as a co-conspirator in the suit. They each face four counts of aiding and abetting mail fraud and a single count of money laundering.
Tyson Foods spokesman Worth Sparkman declined to comment on the pending case.
Court filings claim Griffith paid Turney, an engineer at the Tyson complex, $25,000 for falsifying bids on a 2007 construction job at the Tyson complex to ensure B&W won the contract.
Turney was responsible for soliciting bids on job projects for Tyson Foods’ Clarksville complex. The corporate policy at Tyson Foods required three bids for every construction project, the filing notes.
The indictment alleges Turney and Griffith plotted to defraud Tyson Foods, by submitting two false bids to ensure B&W’s bid was the lowest.
The indictment also claims Turney received $25,000 as a kickback disguised as an “engineering fee” for work to be completed by his firm -Design Engineering, as part of B&W bid.
Both Turney and Griffith plead not guilty at a Feb. 15 arraignment. Each defendant posted a $5,000 signature bond.
Last Friday, U.S. Judge Jimm Hendren set a jury trial for May 14 in Fayetteville.