Syracuse, New York — Nathaniel P. Lorenz, 47, of Holley, New York, is going to federal prison for 18 months after a jury convicted him of defrauding the New York State Department of Transportation on federally funded bridge maintenance contracts. Lorenz must also pay $600,000 in restitution, the Justice Department announced today.
Lorenz, a former police officer and sheriff’s deputy, was found guilty on all counts after a seven-day trial in November 2018 — eight counts of wire fraud and one count of mail fraud. Senior U.S. District Judge Norman A. Mordue handed down the sentence and ordered a two-year term of supervised release following incarceration.
The fraud centered on ACME Powerwashing Inc., Lorenz’s company based in Holley, which held contracts with NYSDOT from 2010 through 2016 to clean and seal concrete bridge decks in the Buffalo and Binghamton regions. The work, funded largely by the Federal Highway Administration, required precise use of chemical sealants to protect infrastructure from water and chloride damage.
Instead of buying the required materials, Lorenz submitted fake invoices claiming purchases from S.E. Brett, Inc. — a shell company he also owned that does not sell any products. The evidence at trial showed ACME hadn’t bought the proper amount of sealant since at least 2012, slashing costs by at least $500,000 while collecting over $1 million in state payments.
Investigators from the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, the New York State Inspector General’s Office, and NYSDOT’s Investigations Bureau exposed the scheme. They found Lorenz fabricated documentation across three contracts in 2015 and 2016 to hide the fact that critical infrastructure work was being shortchanged.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett. U.S. Attorney Grant C. Jaquith, USDOT-OIG Special Agent in Charge Douglas Shoemaker, State Inspector General Letizia Tagliafierro, and NYSDOT Chief Investigator Robert L. Keihm all confirmed the outcome, underscoring that fraud against public infrastructure programs will be met with federal force.
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Key Facts
- State: New York
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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