Newark, N.J. – A 75-year-old Essex County man, Alan Aranowitz, pleaded guilty today to a massive scheme involving the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and bid rigging. According to authorities, Aranowitz, owner of Arlo Corporation, conspired to defraud the DoD by providing counterfeit military equipment parts and rigging bids for defense contracts.
From 2015 through August 2018, Aranowitz, along with two other company owners, provided cheaper, non-conforming parts to the DoD under false pretenses. He falsely claimed that these parts were MIL-SPEC, ‘Exact Product,’ or manufactured by his own company when they were not. As a result, he and his co-conspirators increased their profits at the expense of the U.S. military.
In addition, from 2017 through August 2018, Aranowitz conspired with another DoD contractor to rig bids. Despite being required to submit independent bids, Aranowitz regularly consulted with this contractor, leading to predetermined bid prices. These illegal activities resulted in significant financial losses for the DoD and DLA.
As part of his plea agreement, Aranowitz agreed to forfeit $684,168 in proceeds from the fraudulent scheme and pay $878,644 in restitution to the DoD. He faces up to 20 years in prison on each wire fraud conspiracy charge, which carry a maximum fine of $250,000.
U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger credited special agents from the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and Homeland Security Investigations for their work in this investigation. Sentencing is scheduled for October 29, 2024.
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Key Facts
- State: New Jersey
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Public Corruption|White Collar Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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