Berlin company, owner reach $300K civil agreement with U.S.
CONNECTICUT (WTNH) — A Berlin-based company and its owner have entered into a $300,000 civil settlement agreement with the United States to resolve allegations that they failed to comply with the requirements of the Buy American Act (BAA) and the Trade Agreements Act (TAA) by selling foreign end products to several government procuring agencies, including by shipping products directly from China to a procuring agency, in violation of the False Claims Act.
In 2013, LED Lighting Solutions, LLC and its owner, Thomas DeSantos entered into a Multiple Award Schedule contract (MAS) with the General Services Administration (GSA) to supply LED lights and lighting products, which required compliance with the TAA.
5 CT residents indicted for fraud over business loans
The TAA generally bars government procurements of end products from foreign countries that have not entered into trade agreements with the U.S. The BAA creates a preference for the government to acquire domestic end products.
Before entering into the GSA MAS contract, LED Lighting Solutions provided GSA with a 'letter of supply' attesting to its supplier's compliance with the TAA. LED Lighting Solutions certified compliance with the TAA and failed to identify any foreign end products on its product list each year.
The Air Force, Coast Guard, GSA, Department of State, and USDA each ordered products off of LED Lighting Solutions' GSA MAS contract.
The government contends that LED Lighting Solutions and DeSantos falsely certified that they were providing these agencies with TAA-compliant end products under seven contracts/delivery orders when, in fact, some of the end products were manufactured in China, which has not entered into a trade agreement with the U.S.
This included at least one contract for which LED Lighting Solutions and DeSantos arranged to have products shipped directly from China to the procuring agency.
LED Lighting Solutions also entered into eight contracts/delivery orders with the Air Force, Army, and FEMA, which required compliance with the BAA. The government contends that LED Lighting Solutions and DeSantos falsely certified that they were providing these procuring agencies with domestic end products when, in fact, some of the products were foreign end products.
In addition to making payment under the civil settlement agreement, LED Lighting also agreed to withdraw, with prejudice, two appeals pending before the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA) for termination of an Army contract for which LED Lighting Solutions supplied foreign end products in violation of the BAA and the False Claims Act.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
- Yahoo
New Gold Star on Hamilton's west side is open and has an expanded menu
Jun. 6—A relocated Hamilton west side Gold Star restaurant is now open and is much larger than its former location on Main Street. It is in a plaza on North Brookwood Avenue that will see explosive growth in the next few years. A Valvoline is being built nearby, next to Wendy's and a newly announce Kroger Marketplace will be close, too. The Gold Star is corporate-owned as it replaces a building owned by now-former franchisee Carlo Salem, who is retiring. Gold Star Chili CEO Roger David said the work to select a location and build it took at least five years. However, it's been his priority for just about his entire 10-year tenure as CEO. Plans for the project were approved by Hamilton City Council in 2023. "It's very, very rewarding to be here," he said. David said patrons will notice a few things walking through the door, one being "an elevated level of hospitality." Another is an expanded menu, which in addition to the classic conies and ways, the restaurant will serve single and double burgers, deckers, fried chicken sandwiches, milkshakes and garlic parmesan fries, which David says "are the best in the city." The westside Hamilton store is a little bigger than the newer prototype restaurants being built over the past few years. The new Gold Star store replaced an old Pizza Hut, but David said they used that pizza restaurant's existing footprint, which resulted in a bigger space. "It has a tremendous dining room in there, we can accommodate a large group," he said. Gold Star plans to continue its partnership with community groups, including the schools, churches "and any organization that congregates." "We'll be a part of whatever their needs may be," he said. But helping with food banks and pantries is where the 60-year-old restaurant chain "really, really leans in heavily." "Understanding community needs is kind of where it starts, but with hunger, that's typically where we lean in a little heavier," he said. While the North Brookwood Gold Star has been open for a couple of weeks, the Cincinnati-based chain will formally celebrate its opening the weekend of Aug. 9 and 10, where guests can get free cheese coneys with the purchase of a drink, and chances to win free burgers for a year. The restaurant is open daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at 108 N. Brookwood Ave.
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Soldier Who 'Hates Himself' for Dismembering Pregnant Wife, Unborn Child with Chainsaw Learns Fate
Pfc Dewayne Johnson II, a former Hawaii-based U.S. Army soldier, was sentenced to 23 years in prison on June 3 after he admitted to killing his 19-year-old wife Mischa Johnson Dewayne used a machete and chainsaw to dismember Mischa and threw out her body parts in a dumpster in trash bags According to prosecutors, Dewayne had messaged 18 different women on a dating app and they found photos of him on his phone with another womanA Hawaii-based U.S. Army soldier was sentenced to 23 years in prison on June 3 after he admitted that he killed his 19-year-old wife and unborn child in the midst of a heated argument — and then dismembered her body to cover up the crime. Pfc Dewayne Johnson II, 29, pleaded guilty at a court-martial to voluntary manslaughter, obstruction of justice and providing false statements, according to a statement from the U.S. Army. He received the maximum sentence, plus a reduction in rank and a dishonorable discharge from the military. On July 12, 2024, Dewayne and his wife, Mischa Johnson, were at their home when they got into a heated argument, the Army statement said. In a military courtroom, Dewayne testified to the judge that he struck Mischa in the head with a machete that they had in their home. The machete then got stuck in Mischa's temple, Hawaii News Now reported. Dewayne eventually freed the machete from Mischa's head and tried to dismember her corpse with it. He was unsuccessful in doing so and bought a chainsaw to dismember what remained of her body. Dewayne admitted in court to severing Mischa's arms and legs from her head and torso, which he kept intact, per the local outlet. He then told the military judge that he separated Mischa's body parts into three trash bags and put them in a dumpster on the military barracks, knowing they would later be incinerated. During the June 3 sentencing, Dewayne offered an apology to Mischa's family, his own family and colleagues on his base, Hawaii News Now reported. 'My wife didn't deserve that. She wasn't trash,' he said. 'I hate myself for what I did, every day.' Mischa's remains and the remains of her unborn child have never been found, according to the statement from the U.S. Army. Both of their remains are presumed to have been transported to Hawaii's trash incinerator. 'While no amount of confinement will ever be able to truly ease the pain of the loss of Ms. Johnson and her unborn child for her family and friends, it is my hope that Pfc. Johnson's admission of guilt and the information he provided as a part of the plea agreement can provide some element of closure,' Lt. Col. Nicholas Hurd, a prosecutor for the Seventh Circuit in the U.S. Army, said in a statement. Dewayne didn't report Mischa missing to authorities until two weeks after he killed her, according to the U.S. Army statement. He even participated in community search parties across Hawaii to look for her. According to prosecutors, Dewayne had messaged 18 different women on a dating app and they found photos of him on his phone with another woman which showed him kissing and performing sexual acts on her, KTIV sister, Mariana Tapiz, spoke to Island News about how painful it was to hear about the details of how her sister was killed. 'As a family together, we're just trying not to focus on the horrific details of her last moment with him. And instead, right now, we're trying to remember the happy memories that we have and remember her in that life,' Tapiz said. If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages. Read the original article on People
Axios
24 minutes ago
- Axios
Buc-ee's opens store an hour from New Orleans
Buc-ee's opens its massive travel center Monday in Mississippi just off Interstate 10 in Pass Christian. Why it matters: It's the popular chain's closest location to New Orleans (it's about one hour away) as it works on building its first two stores in Louisiana. The big picture: Buc-ee's is a cult favorite for road trippers. It's known for clean bathrooms, fresh food and beaver-themed merchandise. The Mississippi location has all the classics, the company says, including Texas barbeque, jerky, fudge, kolaches, pastries and snacks. It also has 120 gas pumps and 24 EV charging stations, according to a press release. The store opens at 6am and will be open 24 hours, seven days a week. By the numbers: It's the company's first store in Mississippi and has one of its largest footprints at 74,000 square feet. Its largest store, which it claims is the world's largest convenience station, is in Luling, Texas, at 75,593 square feet. Until now, the closest one to New Orleans was in Alabama near Mobile. Zoom out: Buc-ee's is a Texas-based chain that has been expanding its footprint nationally. Its first Louisiana store is expected to open in Ruston late next year, a company spokesperson tells Axios. A Lafayette store is projected to open in 2027, the spokesperson says. If you go: Expect crowds and traffic on I-10 near the new store. The Pass Christian location is at 8245 Firetower Road, which is accessed via exit 24 (Menge Avenue) on I-10.
