Over a dozen executives working for Michael Bloomberg’s company have been arrested on charges of fraud, theft, and bribery charges. Some of those arrested are senior executives in the firm.
It was an elaborate scheme, whereby the executives would receive kickbacks and in return, the vendors would raise the price for their services. The scheme was part of construction work being done in Bloomberg offices and it is not suspected that Bloomberg himself was involved in the plot.
The kickback scheme has been operating for at least four years and involved millions of dollars.
The insider scheme, which is considered to be pay-to-play, was centered around construction work that occurred at the company’s offices. Subcontractors and vendors are accused of paying bribes and kickbacks in many different forms over the course of four years to executives at Bloomberg and two executives employed by Turner Construction, a general contractor that oversaw work at Bloomberg.
At this time, there is no evidence that Michael Bloomberg, who is eyeing a potential 2020 run for president, knew about the fraud that was occurring in his office.
Bloomberg recently visited the state of Iowa, where he was not warmly embraced.
During his trip to the state to discuss wind energy, Bloomberg backtracked on his previous statements regarding his opposition to corn-based ethanol, one of Iowa’s major economic drivers.
Bloomberg once considered sugar-based ethanol to be safer for the environment but said one can make the argument that “ethanol is neutral” during his visit to Iowa.