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Federal Market Intelligence for Small Business |
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Scrutiny for Trumps in contractA complaint has been filed with the Justice Dept.’s Office of Inspector General alleging that a Reston, VA contractor that recently won a $33 million federal contract failed to disclose that President Trump’s younger brother owns a part of the company. The complaint, filed by Venable LLP on behalf of an anonymous bidder, alleges possible favoritism in the awarding of the contract to CertiPath, according to a news report in the Washington Post. Since 2013, CertiPath has been partially owned by Robert S. Trump, the president’s younger brother. The contract is for security for the U.S. Marshals Service. “The circumstances of this contract award, and what appear to be CertiPath’s efforts to obscure Mr. Robert Trump’s financial interest in the company even as it trades on the Trump name, present the appearance of preferential treatment for those who are close to the President,” states the complaint to the IG, according to the Post article. Dismas N. Locaria, a Venable lawyer, signed the complaint letter. He has not named his client. CertiPath addressed the claims in a statement: “Aside from the obvious difficulty of trading on someone's name without disclosing it, CertiPath categorically denies it has ever made any attempt to trade on the Trump name nor has the company made any effort to hide Mr. Robert Trump's indirect ownership in CertiPath. Mr. Robert Trump is a minority shareholder as was disclosed on filings by the company with the GSA. He is not an officer, director, or agent of CertiPath, and took no part in the negotiation or preparation of the successful bid.” Another bidder, NMR Consulting Inc., filed a protest with the GAO. The marshals service has put a hold on the contract while the protest is adjudicated.
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