William Ross Badoni, 59, of Shiprock and Elroy Harry, 59 of Aztec appeared in federal court on April 27 and April 25 on an indictment charging them with conspiracy to commit federal program fraud, according to a release from the state attorney office.
The indictment also charges Badoni with one count of committing theft or bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds and eight counts of laundering monetary instruments.
Badoni and Harry were indicted by a federal grand jury on April 11, 2023. During the relevant time, Badoni owned and directed Badoni Construction Company, located in San Juan County, while Harry was employed by Kinteel Residential Campus, Inc. KRCI, according to the release, is a residential facility that offers free or low-cost housing and meal accommodations for students attending school in Aztec. KRCI supports its projects with federal funds from the Department of Interior through the Bureau of Indian Education.
From about April 2018 to June 2019, Badoni and Harry allegedly conspired to falsify and submit to KRCI bids in the names of other construction companies in order to make it more likely that Badoni’s bids would be selected for KRCI construction projects.
According to the release, “Harry also allegedly provided Badoni with non-public information about construction projects and the bidding process. In return, Badoni allegedly gave, offered, or agreed to give things of value, namely sums of money, to Harry.”
When Badoni was awarded the construction contracts, Harry and Badoni allegedly conspired to increase Badoni's compensation through fraudulent “change orders” for KRCI’s approval. The release further states, Badoni and Harry allegedly caused KRCI to issue new construction contracts on an urgent basis under false pretenses in order to justify deviating from standard policies and procedures relating to KRCI’s bidding process.
“We will ardently protect taxpayer dollars invested in our youth,” United States Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez said. “Protecting the integrity of contracting processes involving federal funds helps make sure that when we invest in our communities, that investment pays off.”
“The Department of the Interior (DOI) Office of Inspector General (OIG) is committed to protecting our Indian Country schools and dormitories, so the students receive the education and opportunities they deserve, and the educators and staff have the resources they need,” Jamie DePaepe, Special Agent in Charge for the DOI OIG said in the release. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively investigate fraud in DOI programs to ensure those who defraud DOI programs are held accountable.”
If convicted, Badoni faces up to 20 years in prison and Harry faces up to 5 years in prison.
“This indictment shows IRS-Criminal Investigation’s commitment to ensuring fair and open competition opportunities for companies seeking to work with the federal government,” Andy Tsui, IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge said in the release. “IRS-CI will continue working with our law enforcement partners to ensure an even playing field for those attempting to obtain federal contracts for their businesses."
