Construction Company Owners Charged With $5.4 Million Fraud Scheme

 

Rawinder Dhillon and Amninder Singh Allegedly Submitted Fraudulent Surety Bonds to New York State to Obtain Construction Payments on False Pretenses

 Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Michael J. Driscoll, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced today the unsealing of a Complaint charging RAWINDER DHILLON and AMNINDER SINGH, the owners of a construction company, with participating in a scheme to submit fraudulent bonds to the New York State Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery (“GOSR”) in order to obtain payments on false pretenses in connection with construction projects funded by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”).  The defendants were arrested this morning and will be presented in Manhattan federal court later today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Lehrburger.

FBI Assistant Director in Charge Michael J. Driscoll said: “The defendants allegedly conspired to obtain over five million dollars from the state of New York based on phony construction surety bonds.  Unfortunately, this is another example of a program intended to help communities recover from disaster being targeted for manipulation and fraud.  The FBI is committed to ensuring that individuals who conspire to commit fraud against the government face the consequences for their schemes.”

According to the allegations contained in the Complaint:[1]

GOSR was established in 2013 – following Hurricane Irene, Tropical Storm Lee, and Superstorm Sandy – to centralize recovery and rebuilding efforts in impacted areas of New York State.  GOSR utilizes federal funding to provide aid for housing recovery, small businesses, community reconstruction, and infrastructure.  DHILLON and SINGH owned and operated a construction company based in Staten Island, New York (“the Construction Company”).  The Construction Company was awarded contracts by GOSR in connection with certain construction projects (the “Construction Projects”) funded by HUD. 

For each of the Construction Projects, the Construction Company was required to obtain surety performance bonds (meant to ensure satisfactory completion of a construction company’s contractual obligations) and payment bonds (meant to ensure payment by a construction company to subcontractors and/or vendors supplying labor and/or materials).  In or about April 2021, the Construction Company emailed to GOSR documents purporting to be the required performance bonds and payment bonds for the Construction Projects.  Following the submission of the purported bonds, GOSR paid the Construction Company more than approximately $5.4 million in connection with the Construction Projects.

In or about February 2022, a subcontractor (the “Subcontractor”) that had contracted with the Construction Company to perform roofing work in connection with one of the Construction Projects contacted GOSR to report that the Construction Company had not paid the Subcontractor for its work.  In response, GOSR provided the Subcontractor with a copy of one of the purported bonds so that the Subcontractor could obtain payment from the insurance carrier.  However, when the Subcontractor contacted the insurance broker that allegedly issued the bond, the insurance broker informed the Subcontractor, in substance and in part, that the insurance broker had no record of issuing the bond and that the bond was fraudulent.  Thereafter, the insurance broker informed GOSR, in substance and in part, that each of the purported payment and performance bonds provided by the Construction Company to GOSR were fraudulent.  Accordingly, on or about February 20, 2022, GOSR terminated its contracts with the Construction Company.

DHILLON, 32, of Staten Island, New York, and SINGH, 37, of New Hyde Park, New York, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of aggravated identity theft, which carries a mandatory two-year consecutive sentence. 

The minimum and maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants would be determined by a judge.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI.

The charges contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the description of the Complaint set forth herein constitute only allegations, and every fact described herein should be treated as an allegation.