Bay Area Concrete stuck around and opened a new dump on PG&E property in Petaluma. He said the company may have overlooked some details as it grew its business. In February 2020, PG&E canceled Bay Area Concretes contracts and publicly announced its belief that the waste company had committed fraud. The allegations track closely with the results of an investigation last year by ProPublica and the Bay City News Foundation, which found that PG&E had overlooked numerous warning signs when it hired Bay Area Concrete. In July 2018, the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board issued a notice of noncompliance saying that the Sacramento facility, still under construction, lacked proper state permits. Bauters spoke in defense of Bay Area Concrete, arguing that city staff had not responded to the company's attempts to come into compliance. Butte County District Attorney Michael Ramsey confirmed that PG&E contacted his office regarding the allegations and said he is waiting for further information from the utility. Please enter valid email address to continue. The company is owned and managed by the husband-wife team Yadwinder "Kevin" Singh and Preet Johal, according to local and state documents. A subordinate is accused of having received a bribe in an unorthodox property transfer of a multimillion-dollar house in a wealthy suburb of San Francisco. The employee, Ryan Kooistra, lost his job as PG&E went public with the allegations, according to industry insiders. Since 2010, the power and gas company has been found responsible for 117 deaths and hit with more than $15 billion in fines and damages for failing to maintain gas and power lines that stretch across California. PG&E alleges that Huggins approved false invoices and concealed fraudulent charges throughout PG&Es contract with Bay Area Concrete. When confronted by PG&E investigators, Huggins told the investigators he had paid the $16,750 bill in cash, which he happened to have on hand in his house. Summary: How A Pg&E Contractor With A Sketchy Past Made Millions After California's Deadliest Fire, 'Zero visibility' conditions: All roads to Tahoe are closed, My meal at this landmark SF spot was too expensive to be so bad, One of the largest movie theaters in SF to close permanently, Report: Matthew McConaughey has a massive Salesforce paycheck, 'Really cool sight': Rare waterspout forms in Northern California, Horoscope for Wednesday, 3/01/23 by Christopher Renstrom, Man shot dead near San Francisco Ferry Building, A different horse': Bay Area will likely continue to see rain, 'Lady in the fridge' murder victim ID'd as Bay Area mother of 3, 'Life threatening': Tahoe braces for massive blizzard, Snow shuts down over 70 miles of I-80 in Northern California, These East Bay gems are a haven for music lovers. Another shell company, CCI Management, was owned by Kooistra and acted as a subcontractor for Bay Area Concrete in Paradise. Bay Area Concrete overcharged for travel time while hauling and billed PG&E for work that was never done or was unnecessary. PG&Es filing is in response to a breach of contract lawsuit filed against the utility in October by Bay Area Concrete. The firm was tied to illegal dumping on federally. The firm was tied to illegal dumping on federally protected wetlands and had engaged in a long conflict with regulators in the city of Hayward, where Bay Area Concrete operates a dump. Huggins retired, and Kooistra sold his home and moved out of state after being confronted by PG&E investigators, the counterclaim by PG&E said. The company is owned and managed by the husband-wife team Yadwinder "Kevin" Singh and Preet Johal, according to local and state documents. Olivero wrote that PG&E owed the company more than $14 million. In the summer of 2014, Economy Trucking used an illegal dump site in Newark, a nearby suburb, to get rid of thousands of tons of concrete and asphalt, court records show. Rob Roth reports from Paradise. Corporate records unearthed by the news organizations reveal new details about the alleged schemes. His office accepts new patients and telehealth appointments. Police shut down the site in September 2014. That business grew substantially in November 2018, when a PG&E transmission line sparked a wildfire in Butte County that destroyed more than 18,000 structures and killed 85 people. They show that while the 2018 fire still burned in Paradise, an attorney for Bay Area Concretes owners registered a limited liability company at the business address of another one of the owners companies. Is the Stanley Quencher tumbler worth its TikTok hype? PG&E hired Bay Area Concrete to dispose of waste from hydrovac trucks -- special vacuum trucks that use pressurized water for precise excavation. PG&E's court filing alleges that Regal Rose LLC, a shell company established by Singh, was also in possession of a property in Arizona when it was transferred to Kooistra. At the time, PG&E owed Bay Area Concrete nearly $4 million, according to bankruptcy filings. T.J. Simmons, then-senior vice president of ConXtech, a neighboring business, wrote a letter to the city in 2018 to complain. According to the countercomplaint, Kooistra denied any wrongdoing or having an interest in the companies, despite the interest being disclosed in public records. As a result, the value of Bay Area Concrete's contracts with PG&E increased "exponentially" over a period of four years, the lawsuit said. Olivero also said his firm had saved PG&E and its customers nearly $80 million by setting up the dumpsite outside of Paradise. In 16 years, the pair's business empire has grown from a single trucking firm to more than a dozen companies operating in 11 cities throughout the West Coast. In August 2017, Bay Area Concrete hired an environmental engineer, Tim Bauters, to oversee the process. View the profiles of professionals named "Yadwinder Singh" on LinkedIn. One day, a PG&E employee crossed the street and offered Bay Area Concrete a contract to use street sweeping trucks to clean the PG&E facility, according to Packal. When those did not work, they issued three violations in 2018 for allowing concrete dust into the street, where it clogged storm drains. ADVERTISING Advertise Legal Notices Obituaries Writing An Obituary Submit an Obituary, COMPANY INFO Job Opportunities Privacy PolicyTerms of Service, What to Include in Your Marin County Obituary. Bay Area Concrete is part of a sprawling network of hauling, recycling and construction companies owned by Bay Area couple Preet Johal and Yadwinder "Kevin" Singh. Bay Area Concrete, operating under the name Slurry Waste Solutions, built a specialized disposal facility in Paradise. Under California law, PG&E executives couldn't be prosecuted for behavior about which they lacked direct knowledge. Driven by gusts of up to 36 mph, the fire was heading straight for Paradise. Facebook gives people the power. In response to a long list of questions, PG&E provided a brief statement that did not directly address how warning signs like the company owners' long conflict with the city of Hayward and participation in an illegal dumping operation were overlooked. According to PG&E's complaint, CCI did hauling work for Bay Area Concrete, which would submit invoices directly to PG&E. Ramsey said in an email that he received no further information from PG&E but had determined that his office did not have jurisdiction in the case. PG&E has initiated an internal review to determine why this wasnt detected earlier, and we will be enhancing our protocols to ensure this doesnt happen again, a PG&E spokesperson wrote. To assist in the cleanup, PG&E hired a fleet of as many as 180 hydrovac trucks, which flocked to Paradise from as far away as Kansas City and Montana. 21 talking about this. Ownership of that new company was later transferred to a PG&E employee who oversaw Bay Area Concrete's work in Paradise. Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. and Bay City News Service. (Another skier died on the same slope that same weekend.) From Paradise, the truck operators would have to drive long distances to dump their loads, to places such as Chico, Sacramento or Tracy, slowing down the work and making it more expensive. React . PG&E's counterclaim, filed earlier this month, names Bay Area Concrete, both former PG&E employees, Singh, Johal, several of their other companies and Bay Area Concrete CEO Kevin Olivero as defendants. 90 percent of businesses in Butte County were destroyed in the wildfire. The company is owned and managed by the husband-wife team Yadwinder "Kevin" Singh and Preet Johal, according to local and state documents. "Absolutely no photos or videos taken on these premises without permission," it says. In 2018, Singh and Johal acquired a property in Tracy in California's Central Valley and opened new facilities in Seattle and San Jose. In exchange, the lawsuit alleges, a company linked to Johal and Singh repaved Huggins' driveway while they were supposed to be working on a PG&E job. Kooistra was interviewed in January 2020 by PG&E investigators, who confronted him with evidence of his interest in companies connected to Bay Area Concrete. The Bay City News Foundation and ProPublica first reported the exchange, which one expert described as possible money laundering. Bay Area Concrete, operating under the name Slurry Waste Solutions, built a specialized disposal facility in Paradise. Later, the news agencies revealed a suspicious real estate transaction that connected Singh and one of the PG&E employees. PG&E's filing is in response to a breach of contract lawsuit filed against the utility in October by Bay Area Concrete. The allegations are patently false and not supported by the evidence, she said. PG&E alleges that Huggins approved false invoices and concealed fraudulent charges throughout PG&E's contract with Bay Area Concrete. In November 2013, Hayward officials received a complaint alleging that Singh and Johal had ignored the city and begun operating the recycling facility without a permit. He wrote he was concerned rocks would tumble onto his property and hit someone. The new court filings show that PG&E had a longer business relationship with Bay Area Concrete than previously known. Public records show that the companys income increased substantially, from $16.5 million to $43.5 million, after receiving a contract to dispose of waste in connection with the Paradise fire. Bay Area Concrete has denied the allegations of fraud and bribery in Paradise. He moved out in November . As a result, the value of Bay Area Concrete's contracts with PG&E increased "exponentially" over a period of four years, the lawsuit said. At the end of the day, this is really an illegal business thats asking to continue operating, Commissioner Gary Patton said at the meeting, and its been illegal since 2013.. "At the end of the day, this is really an illegal business that's asking to continue operating," Commissioner Gary Patton said at the meeting, "and it's been illegal since 2013.". A subordinate is accused of having received a bribe in an unorthodox property transfer of a multimillion-dollar house in a wealthy suburb of San Francisco. They throw lavish holiday parties for their employees and clients and sometimes give expensive presents, like $1,000 gift cards. Packal said the arrangement resulted in substantial savings for PG&E in the labor and gas for trips to faraway disposal sites. PG&Es court filing alleges that Regal Rose LLC, a shell company established by Singh, was also in possession of a property in Arizona when it was transferred to Kooistra. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Circleville, OH . PG&E then suspended business with the five sites, all competitors of Bay Area Concrete, pending the outcome of the water board's investigation. The litigation process will make this clear in time.. Meanwhile, competing companies lost work with PG&E. Hydro excavation trucks use pressurized water to dig around delicate equipment and avoid accidentally rupturing a gas pipeline or destroying buried wires. Lucero, who pleaded guilty in a 2008 case involving the payment of bribes to landfill operators in San Jose, told one of Johal and Singh's employees that he had permission to dump on a national wildlife refuge site on the shores of San Francisco Bay. PG&E alleges that Huggins approved false invoices and concealed fraudulent charges throughout PG&Es contract with Bay Area Concrete. Olivero reached an agreement with federal prosecutors to testify against Lucero. The company is owned and managed by the husband-wife team Yadwinder "Kevin" Singh and Preet Johal, according to local and state documents. Kooistra did not respond to attempts to contact him by phone, mail or social media. Over the next year, crews working for the state Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery removed nearly 3.7 million tons of debris, including 673,244 tons of contaminated soil. The facility processed the slurry waste from hydrovac trucks, special excavation equipment that uses pressurized water to dig around delicate equipment like buried gas lines or cables. Join Facebook to connect with Yadwinder Singh and others you may know. According to the disposal company, it racked up $14 million in unpaid invoices. As a result, the value of Bay Area Concretes contracts with PG&E increased exponentially over a period of four years, the lawsuit said. PG&E asked Kooistra to turn over his company-issued phone, which he did, but he refused to provide his passcode so investigators could access text messages and other data. Kooistra resigned and his supervisor, superintendent of gas transmission and distribution Ron Huggins, also no longer works at PG&E, according to the news organizations' investigation. Still, over the next six weeks, Singh and Johal's Economy Trucking Services was one of the most prolific dumpers at the site, dumping up to 100 truckloads every day, each weighing between 10 tons and 12 tons, according to court transcripts. This is in addition to avoiding the significant negative environmental impacts that trucking and processing these materials elsewhere in the state would have caused.. . 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. But Lucero wasn't interested. PG&E's court filing alleges that Regal Rose LLC, a shell company established by Singh, was also in possession of a property in Arizona when it was transferred to Kooistra. Butte County District Attorney Michael Ramsey said last year that PG&E alerted his office to the allegations against Bay Area Concrete. Another shell company, CCI Management, was owned by Kooistra and acted as a subcontractor for Bay Area Concrete in Paradise. To pay the bribes, Singh used a series of real estate transactions involving a 5,600-square-foot home in Saratoga to transfer money to Kooistra, PG&E alleges. Meanwhile, competing companies lost work with PG&E. Another shell company, CCI Management, was owned by Kooistra and acted as a subcontractor for Bay Area Concrete in Paradise. The firm was tied to illegal dumping on federally protected wetlands and had engaged in a long conflict with regulators in the city of Hayward, where Bay Area Concrete operates a dump. Bay Area Concrete stuck around and opened a new dump on PG&E property in Petaluma. In February, PG&E CEO William Johnson publicly accused Hayward-based Bay Area Concrete Recycling of defrauding the utility and bribing PG&E employees. The Bay City News Foundation and ProPublica first reported the exchange, which one expert described as possible money laundering. Two days later, Kooistra quit his job, according to the complaint. Four days later, he retired. According to PG&Es complaint, CCI did hauling work for Bay Area Concrete, which would submit invoices directly to PG&E. "It was definitely a battle with the city the whole time," Packal said. Responsible for establishing a corporate relationship with multi-national companies, and manage salary accounts, corporate credit cards . "As we have stated previously, PG&E will continue to hold ourselves and those that do work on our behalf to the highest ethical standards.". The pair were careful to keep Bay Area Concretes purchase orders low enough that Huggins would not have to seek approval from his supervisors. Singh and Johal's companies also have a history of not cooperating with inspectors. It turned out to be a lucrative business opportunity for Bay Area Concrete - thanks to Pacific Gas & Electric, the giant Northern California utility company whose electric lines had caused the conflagration. "We think we got completely screwed by PG&E," Packal said. But at a city Planning Commission meeting in November 2018, commissioners were unmoved. PG&E paid CCI $150,000 over five weeks without knowing that the company was owned by Kooistra, a violation of PG&E employment and supplier policies. After the site was shut down, Singh and Johal hired Olivero to be the CEO of Bay Area Concrete. Clearly what you are doing now is not working. PG&E alleges that in exchange for these kickbacks, the employees provided lucrative clean-up jobs to Hayward-based Bay Area Concrete Recycling. The accused PG&E employees, Ronald Huggins Jr. and Ryan Kooistra, did not respond to requests for comment. One supervisor for PG&E allegedly had his driveway paved on the power companys dime. He is very compassionate and Caring. If the dust was allowed to drain into the bay, it could be harmful to fish. The company, Packal said, had a truck to haul water from site to site. To pay the bribes, Singh used a series of real estate transactions involving a 5,600-square-foot home in Saratoga to transfer money to Kooistra, PG&E alleges. In a statement posted to the company's website, he accused PG&E of falsifying accusations to avoid paying bills. It was definitely a battle with the city the whole time, Packal said. "The allegations are patently false and not supported by the evidence," she said. As a result, the value of Bay Area Concretes contracts with PG&E increased exponentially over a period of four years, the lawsuit said. The complaint alleges that Huggins and Kooistra approved the overbilled work in exchange for kickbacks. - California utility PG&E, facing billions of dollars in potential liabilities over its role in. The company is owned and managed by the husband-wife team Yadwinder "Kevin" Singh and Preet Johal, according to local and state documents. PG&E first started disposing of waste in the company's Hayward yard in 2016, and the business expanded to include the cleanup of PG&E yards throughout Northern California.
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