10/18/12 - A Howell contractor charged in a Detroit bid-rigging scheme will avoid jail time after being sentenced last week. 54 year old Brian Dodds was ordered to serve six months of home confinement, followed by two years of probation, for his guilty plea to concealment of a felony in U.S. District Court in 2010 for knowing about the conspiracy to defraud the government but not notifying authorities. He was also ordered to pay a $5,000 fine. Dodds had been set for sentencing half a dozen previous times, but federal authorities continued to seek postponements while they investigated the full extent of corruption in Detroit during the tenure of ex-mayor Kwame Kilpatrick. Dodds, co-owner of D & R Earthmoving, admitted to creating false and inflated bids in April of 2007 for the Garden View Estates public housing project in Detroit allegedly at the urging of co-defendant Bobby Ferguson of Ferguson Enterprises, a close friend of Kilpatrick. Ferguson, along with Kilpatrick; his father, Bernard Kilpatrick; and ex-city water chief Victor Mercado are currently on trial after being charged with running a criminal enterprise through the mayor's office to enrich themselves. Prosecutors say Dodds made it appear as though the $11.9 million bid from Fergusonâs company was the lowest presented for demolition work and utilities installation. In return for allowing the false bid to be submitted, authorities say Dodds received a sub-contract from Ferguson worth more than $300,000. (JK)
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