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NEWS from the Office of the New York State Comptroller
Contact: Press Office 518-474-4015

Comptroller DiNapoli and AG Schneiderman Announce Fourth and Final Guilty Plea in Monroe Co. Bid-Rigging Case

Daniel Lynch Could Face Up to Seven Years in State Prison Following his Guilty Plea to Four Felonies in Connection with Elaborate Bid-Rigging Scheme; Lynch is the Fourth and Final Defendant Under This Indictment to Plead Guilty to Charges Related to This

February 9, 2016

Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli and Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced the guilty plea of Daniel Lynch, a Rochester-area businessman, for working with others to rig the bidding process for multi-million dollar public works contracts in Monroe County.

Lynch today entered a guilty plea before The Honorable Dennis M. Kehoe in Monroe County Court to four felonies, including two counts of the class “C” felony charge of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree in violation of Penal Law § 155.40(1) and two counts of the class “E” felony charge of Combination in Restraint of Trade and Competition in violation of General Business Law §§ 340 and 341, also known as New York State’s Donnelly Act. Based on what was stated on the record in today’s court proceedings, it is expected that Lynch will be sentenced to two-and-one-third to seven years in state prison and be required to pay approximately $600,000.00 in restitution and forfeiture.

"Mr. Lynch's conviction is the fourth to stem from my office’s audits and investigation of the widespread misuse of LDCs," said State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. "These individuals saddled taxpayers with millions in unnecessary costs, and thought they could get away with it. What transpired in Monroe County should send a warning statewide. I want to thank Attorney General Schneiderman for his work on these cases, and I urge the public to report corruption and hold officials accountable.”

"Government contracts must be awarded fairly and competitively," Attorney General Schneiderman said. "Today's guilty plea demonstrates that my office is committed to ensuring that taxpayer funds are being spent appropriately. Those who violate the public's trust will be held accountable."

Lynch was originally indicted in November 2013 along with John Maggio, also a local businessman, Robert Wiesner, former Security Director of the Monroe County Water Authority, and Nelson Rivera, former Chief Information Officer for Monroe County. The men were charged in the indictment with a scheme to rig the bidding process for a number of multi-million dollar public works contracts in Monroe County. Those contracts included a $99 million contract to provide upgrades and maintenance for the county’s IT infrastructure, and a $212 million contract to provide upgrades and maintenance for the county’s public safety and security systems. Lynch was also charged in the indictment with inflating contracts and creating false contracts as part of these projects, and using the money from the inflated and false contracts for his own benefit or the benefit of others.

Lynch today admitted that between March 2004 and approximately October 2013, and again between March 2008 and approximately October 2013, while acting in concert with others, he entered into, engaged in, and continued to engage in a contract, agreement, and combination thereof to restrain competition in the bidding process of Monroe County for the $99 million 2004 IT contract and for the $212 million 2009 public safety contract, by means of bid rigging. Lynch also admitted that he created false contracts and inflated other contracts as part of these projects, and used the money from the inflated and false contracts, which came from Monroe County, for his own benefit or the benefit of others.

Lynch is the fourth and final defendant under this indictment to plead guilty to charges related to this bid-rigging scheme. In January, Robert Wiesner pleaded guilty to one class “E” felony, and paid a $5,000.00 fine and forfeited $3,000.00 of illegal gain. He was also sentenced to a three year conditional discharge. Last week, Nelson Rivera pleaded guilty to two class “E” felonies and gave up his government pension. In addition, Rivera may never again serve as a New York public employee, must pay a $25,000 fine and is expected to be sentenced to five years of probation. In November, John Maggio pleaded guilty to one class “E” felony charge of Combination in Restraint of Trade and Competition, also known as a violation of New York State’s Donnelly Act.

This case is the latest investigation conducted as part of Operation Integrity, a joint partnership between the New York State Comptroller and the New York State Attorney General to root out waste and abuse in state government. To date, the initiative has resulted in dozens of convictions and more than $9 million in restitution to the state.

The investigation was conducted jointly with State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli’s Division of Investigations and Division of Local Government and School Accountability.

Assistant Attorneys General Mary Gorman and Brian McDonald of the Attorney General’s Public Integrity Bureau are prosecuting the case, with assistance from analysts Kamla Sookram, Morgan McCollum, and Joseph Conniff. The Public Integrity Bureau is led by Bureau Chief Daniel Cort and Deputy Bureau Chief Stacy Aronowitz. The investigation was handled by Investigators David Buske and Christopher Reidy of the Investigations Bureau, with support from Investigator Richard Doyle, Deputy Bureau Chief Antoine Karam, and Bureau Chief Dominick Zarrella. Executive Deputy Attorney General Kelly Donovan leads the Criminal Justice Division.

Since taking office in 2007, DiNapoli has committed to fighting public corruption and encourages the public to help fight fraud and abuse. New Yorkers can report allegations of fraud involving taxpayer money by calling the toll-free Fraud Hotline at 1-888-672-4555, by filing a complaint online at [email protected], or by mailing a complaint to: Office of the State Comptroller, Division of Investigations, 14th Floor, 110 State St., Albany, NY 12236.

Review prior cases at http://www.osc.state.ny.us/investigations/index.htm.