A purchaser for former Hanford contractor Fluor Hanford has agreed to pay the federal government $14,700 after being accused of accepting kickbacks.
The settlement agreed to by Alicia Woodrich is the second such settlement by a Fluor Hanford purchaser in a month.
Both employees were accused of accepting kickbacks from Shane Fast, who was arraigned along with his nephew Skyler Hamm on Wednesday in Eastern Washington District U.S. Court in Yakima. Both have pleaded innocent.
Woodrich signed an agreement with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Washington but did not admit to accusations.
During 2006, Woodrich accepted tickets to an unspecified sporting event valued at almost $300 from Fast, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. She also accepted a Macy's gift card worth $100, it said.
In 2007, she accepted tickets worth $30 to a Seattle Mariners baseball game, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The gift card and tickets were to obtain or reward favorable treatment from Fast's former company, Fast Pipe and Supply Co., according to allegations.
During 2006, she purchased $77,931 worth of goods for use at Hanford from Fast Pipe. She worked as a material coordinator at Fluor Hanford from October 2002 to October 2008 and received training on federal policy that prohibited accepting kickbacks, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Fluor told employees not to accept gifts worth $25 or more from suppliers.
Had the Department of Energy known that Woodrich was accepting the items from Fast, it would not have covered the cost of purchases from Fast Pipe, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
In December, Fluor Hanford purchaser Timothy Hendricks agreed to pay the federal government $11,000 but denied he accepted sporting event tickets and a restaurant gift card as a reward for favorable treatment for Fast Pipe.
The Department of Justice also has filed a civil lawsuit against three other purchasers for Fluor Hanford.
Fast has been indicted for allegedly paying $40,000 in kickbacks to Hanford employees who purchased goods for use at Hanford. He faces one count of conspiracy to violate the anti-kickback act, seven counts of violating the anti-kickback act and one count of mail fraud.
He was an unsuccessful Republican challenger to Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Wash., in the 2010 primary.
Hamm, a Fast Pipe delivery driver, faces one count of conspiracy to violate the anti-kickback act.
In June, Fluor Hanford agreed to pay the federal government $4 million to resolve allegations related to kickbacks. Fluor denied it knowingly participated in the schemes.
-- Annette Cary: 582-1533; acary@tricityherald.com; more Hanford news at hanfordnews.com
JOIN THE DISCUSSION | Register here
We welcome comments. Please keep them civil, short and to the point. ALL CAPS, spam, obscene, profane, abusive and off topic comments will be deleted. Repeat offenders will be blocked. Thanks for taking part — and abiding by these simple rules. A thorough explanation of rules of conduct can be found in our Terms of Service. If you have any questions, including why your comment may not be showing immediately after you submit it, be sure to visit the commenting FAQ.