A PYMNTS Company

US: Water Exec could go away for 10 years for price-fixing

By  |  April 19, 2016

A former water industry leader could face ten years in jail and a $1 million fine for shady business practices after cheating municipalities out of fair prices for water treatment chemicals, according to the Justice Department.

Frank Reichl of New Jersey, the former executive of water treatment chemicals manufacturer General Chemical Corp., “pleaded guilty for participating in a 13-year-long scheme to eliminate competition by price-fixing, bid-rigging and directing business to specifically-chosen pulp and paper companies across the country,” Talk Radio News Service reported.

What exactly did he do? The Justice Department explained in a statement:

According to documents filed with the court, from 1997 until July 2010, Reichl and his co-conspirators met to discuss each other’s liquid aluminum sulfate business, submitted intentionally losing bids to favor the intended winner of the business, withdrew inadvertently winning bids and discussed prices to be quoted or bid to customers.

Full Content: United States Departament of Justice

Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.