WASHINGTON – Four executives and a corporation were sentenced for participating in a long-running conspiracy to fix prices, rig bids and allocated jobs for ready-mix concrete in the greater Savannah, Ga. area.
James Clayton Pedrick, Gregory Hall Melton, John David Melton, Timothy “Bo” Strickland and Evans Concrete LLC were charged in September 2020 with conspiring to fix prices, rig bids and allocated jobs for the sale of ready-mix concrete used in residential, commercial and public projects.
“Pedrick, Strickland and Evans Concrete later pleaded guilty for their participation in this conspiracy,” stated a press release from the United States Department of Justice. “Gregory Hall Melton and John David Melton were convicted by a jury in the U.s. District Court in Savannah earlier this year.”
Argos USA LLC separately admitted to its role in the conspiracy and entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division in January 2021.
“Gregory Hall Melton was sentenced today to 41 months in prison, and three years of supervised release and to pay a $50,000 fine,” stated a press release from the United States Department of Justice. “John David Melton was sentenced today to 26 months in prison, three years of supervised release and to pay a $10,000 fine.”
The court previously sentenced Strickland to five months in prison and to pay $150,000 fine, Pedrick to one year of probation and Evans Concrete to pay a $2.7 million fine. Argos USA LLC paid a $20 million criminal penalty as part of its DPA.
“Concrete is an essential material in construction projects, with prices set in the free market by the forces of supply and demand,” said U.S. Attorney Jill E. Steinberg for the Southern District of Georgia. “However, the defendants in this case for several years illegally rigged the system to benefit themselves at the expense of customers and are being held accountable for their conduct.”
According to court documents, the defendants effectuated their conspiracy by coordinating the issuance of price-increase letters to customers, allocating specific ready-mix concrete jobs in the coastal Georgia area, and submitting bids to customers at collusive and noncompetitive prices.
“These sentences reflect the egregious nature of rigging bids for materials like ready-mix concrete which are essential to the American economy,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Manish Kumar of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “The Antitrust Division and its law enforcement partners will hold accountable those who seek to exploit the critical need for these materials to harm consumers.”
The charged conspiracy began as early as 2010 and continued until about July 2016.
“The sentences imposed today send a clear message to anyone who chooses corporate greed over open and fair competition,” said Special Agent in Charge Joseph Harris of the Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General (DOT OIG), Southern Region. “Our commitment to working with our law enforcement partners and DOJ’s Antitrust Division is unwavering as we continue to pursue and uncover corrupt conduct and hold companies that intentionally engage in wrongdoing accountable.”
The FBI Washington Field Office, DOT OIG and USPS OIG investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Patrick S. Brown and former Trial Attorney Julia M. Maloney of the Antitrust Division’s Washington Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney E. Greg Gilluly Jr. for the Southern District of Georgia prosecuted the case.
Anyone with information on bid rigging, price fixing, market allocation or other anticompetitive conduct in the ready-mix concrete industry should contact the Antitrust Division’s Complaint Center at 888-647-3258 or visit www.justice.gov/atr/report-violations.
