The former owners and a former top official of a company that had multi-million-dollar contracts with the Defense Department have indicated they will admit to defrauding the U.S. Army on Humvee window contracts.
Two others charged in the case, brought earlier this month by the U.S. attorney's office, have also filed notice that they will plead guilty to their roles in the fraud.
Thomas and John Buckner, who formerly owned Ibis Tek in Butler County, will waive indictment and plead guilty on May 31 before U.S. District Judge Arthur Schwab.
Both were charged March 3 with fraud against the U.S. and income tax evasion.
Their lawyers have declined comment, as has the U.S. attorney's office.
Ibis Tek's former chief financial officer, Harry Kramer, has also indicated he will be plead on May 31 along with the Buckners.
Anthony Shaw, a former Army civilian employee in charge of the Humvee contract in Michigan, will plead guilty on June 1 along with David Buckner, a motorcycle shop owner in Michigan who is accused of acting as a financial intermediary for more than $1 million in illegal gratuities that the Buckners are accused of paying Mr. Shaw. David Buckner is not related to Tom and John Buckner.
The Buckner brothers, whose company specialized in making accessories for military vehicles, are charged with ripping off the Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command in Michigan.
The U.S. attorney's office said they inflated Ibis Tek's costs for make emergency window escape kits for Army Humvees by creating a dummy corporation and using it to buy cheap window frames in China but then filing bogus invoices to make it look like Ibis Tek paid a much higher price.
Prosecutors said they also sold scrap aluminum collected during the manufacturing process but didn't credit the money to the Army as required.
The total loss to the Army has been estimated at more than $6 million.
Mr. Shaw is accused of accepting illegal gratuities from the Buckners and not reporting the payments on his income tax returns.
First Published: March 10, 2017, 8:01 p.m.
