Concrete contractor COLAS Djibouti SARL (Colas Djibouti), has agreed to resolve for $3.9 million civil allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by selling substandard concrete used to construct U.S. Navy airfields in the Republic of Djibouti, the Department of Justice recently announced.
Colas Djibouti, a French limited liability company, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Colas SA, a French civil engineering company.
The civil settlement announced resolves allegations that Colas Djibouti knowingly provided contractually non-compliant concrete that did not meet gradation requirements, contained excessive alkali-silica reactive material, and contained elevated chloride content. These conditions had the potential to promote early-age cracking, surface defects, and the corrosion of embedded steel, and thus, could significantly impair the long-term durability of the concrete utilized on U.S. military bases.
In addition to the civil settlement, U.S. Attorney Robert S. Brewer for the Southern District of California announced a separate Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) with Colas Djibouti pursuant to which Colas Djibouti will admit to the underlying facts and accept responsibility to a one-count information for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and pay a $12,542,002 monetary penalty, comprised of a fine, forfeiture, and restitution. The civil settlement will credit $1,957,998 of Colas Djibouti’s payment under the DPA, and require an additional payment of $1,957,998.
“Government contractors that supply substandard materials to our armed forces not only cheat the American taxpayers but also impose added costs and burdens on the military,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton for the Department of Justice’s Civil Division. “Today’s settlement demonstrates our commitment to ensure that those who do business with the government comply with their contractual obligations.”
This civil settlement was the result of a coordinated effort among the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch (Fraud Section), the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California, the DCIS, the NCIS, and the Defense Contract Audit Agency – Operations Investigative Support Division.
