According to the disposal company, it racked up $14 million in unpaid invoices. Singh and Johal negotiated use of the site through Olivero, whom they would later hire to run their flagship company. Singh did not respond to requests for comment. Olivero wrote that PG&E owed the company more than $14 million. PG&E hired Bay Area Concrete to dispose of waste from hydrovac trucks special vacuum trucks that use pressurized water for precise excavation. 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 16 years, the pair's. 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. The new court filings show that PG&E had a longer business relationship with Bay Area Concrete than previously known. Bay Area Concrete hired a manager of that site, Kevin Olivero, to be its CEO. But slurry can be tough to get rid of. But that same day, a spark ignited brush in the remote foothills of the Sierra Nevada in Northern California. He said the company may have overlooked some details as it grew its business. So you need to do more. 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. Bay Area Concrete has denied the allegations of fraud and bribery in Paradise. Bay Area Concrete has said that PG&E's accusations of fraud are false and the bankrupt utility was just trying to get out of paying its bills. Facebook gives people the power. 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. Copyright Weeklys All rights reserved. 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. According to the disposal company, it racked up $14 million in unpaid invoices. Corporate records unearthed by the news organizations reveal new details about the alleged schemes. 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. Some of those sites ran afoul of regulators as well. The litigation process will make this clear in time.. LIVE-Wedding Ceremony || Yadwinder Singh & Karandeep Kaur || Deva Studio Ding Road Sirsa 94163-56150 "The allegations are patently false and not supported by the evidence," she said. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. By this time, Johal and Singh's companies had expanded rapidly. 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. Rob Roth reports from Paradise. Bay Area Concrete has said that PG&Es accusations of fraud are false and the bankrupt utility was just trying to get out of paying its bills. Hayward levied nearly $60,000 in fines over that period. Four days later, he retired. 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. 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. The firm was tied to illegal dumping on federally. Now, an investigation by the Bay City News Foundation and ProPublica has revealed for the first time a multimillion-dollar real estate transaction linking one of Bay Area Concrete's owners,. One supervisor for PG&E allegedly had his driveway paved on the power company's dime. In selecting Bay Area Concrete for the environmentally sensitive job, however, PG&E ignored the firm's history of illegal dumping and conflict with regulators, as well as its employment of a senior manager connected to environmental crimes, according to interviews and a review of court records, public documents and business filings by the Bay City News Foundation and ProPublica. Here's how the scheme worked, according to PG&E's allegations in court filings. "Imagine how cavalier they will be if you approve this permit.". At the time, PG&E owed Bay Area Concrete nearly $4 million, according to bankruptcy filings. This article was produced in partnership with the Bay City News Foundation, which is a member of the ProPublica Local Reporting Network. In the same year they hired Olivero, Johal and Singh expanded into the business of disposing slurry waste collected by specialized disposal trucks known as hydrovacs. Circleville, OH . At the time, PG&E owed Bay Area Concrete nearly $4 million, according to bankruptcy filings. Bay Area Concrete's contract with PG&E was terminated, and the company is under criminal investigation. A mound of crushed concrete got bigger and bigger and workers could no longer reach the top of it with hoses to control the dust. About 450 more new houses are in the pipeline for reconstruction one year after the start of the Camp Fire. "I've spoken to [Bauters] several times, we have a very different opinion about what is appropriate discharge onto the street and what is not," Wilfong said at a Hayward Planning Commission meeting in 2018. It was definitely a battle with the city the whole time, Packal 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. Fortinet and Palo alto SME with NSE 1,2,3,4,5,7 and PCNSE 7. A city water pollution expert warned the runoff could be contaminating San Francisco Bay. Under Kooistra's supervision, PG&E hired Bay Area Concrete to build a new slurry disposal center at a former Waste Management facility in Paradise. After contracting for the Paradise cleanup, Bay Area Concrete's annual revenue jumped from $16.5 million to $43.5 million, according to documents filed with a lease application. Internal Medicine, Nephrology, Other Specialty (7) 2 Awards . The decision would prove the latest in a series of dubious choices by PG&E that have raised questions about the utility's commitment to safety and the environment, the review found. Butte County District Attorney Michael Ramsey said last year that PG&E alerted his office to the allegations against Bay Area Concrete. PG&Es 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. The investigation was co-published on Tuesday by ProPublica and the Bay City News Foundation. In late 2019, PG&E learned of the alleged fraud and launched an investigation. Bay Area Concrete opened a dump in Paradise to take the waste from the cleanup. 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. Neither the memos nor media reports identified the employees. For years, the owners of Bay Area Concrete Recycling had run an unlicensed dump in the city of Hayward, California. My Official Page - Yadwinder Singh #14 Power Forward for Indian Senior Men's Basketball Team; Haryana Gold at UBA & Zarkawt BCA at MSL. The firm was tied to illegal dumping on federally. Kooistra sold his home in California in February and returned to Arizona, where he founded a pool cleaning business in May. 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. Kooistra did not respond to attempts to contact him by phone, mail or social media. In a statement, PG&E spokesperson James Noonan called the alleged actions of Bay Area Concrete completely unacceptable., We will pursue every available action to remedy the situation and do right by those that we have the privilege to serve, Noonan said. 6 Cabo hotels for your spring break vacation, Your Privacy Choices (Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads). Ownership of that new company was later transferred to a PG&E employee who oversaw Bay Area Concretes work in Paradise. Public File for KBCW-TV / KBCW 44 Cable 12. The blaze grew into the most destructive wildfire in state history and destroyed the town of Paradise. "We were doing a ridiculous amount of volume at a much lower rate than what they could possibly have done." 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. 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. He is affiliated with medical facilities such as Adena Regional Medical Center and Berger Hospital. 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. A slumping chain-link fence with barbed wire surrounds most of the property. His duties included collecting money from contractors dumping dirt and demolition debris and using a bulldozer to spread the dumped material. He moved out in November . PG&E did not say how much the utility believes it was overcharged by Bay Area Concrete as it continues to investigate. The water board declined to comment or confirm the existence of any ongoing investigations. Singh did not respond to requests for comment. SAN FRANCISCO - Utility giant Pacific Gas & Electric accused two of its former employees of accepting bribes to funnel business to a waste-hauling company after the Camp Fire, the deadliest wildfire in California history. "Absolutely no photos or videos taken on these premises without permission," it says. The employee, Ryan Kooistra, lost his job as PG&E went public with the allegations, according to industry insiders. In October, the Washington Department of Ecology ordered the company to keep its site clean and halt discharge of wastewater to storm drains. Singh and Johal's companies also have a history of not cooperating with inspectors. 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. The couple did not respond to requests for comment via mail, phone, email and social media. In a letter to PG&E posted to the companys website, Olivero accused PG&E of falsifying accusations to avoid paying bills as the utility still owes the company a substantial sum. 32 years exp . Nearly two years after the deadly Camp Fire, a new era for California's utilities is still taking shape. 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. They founded their first hauling company, Economy Trucking Services, in 2004. He currently plays for Haryana Gold of India's UBA Pro Basketball League. Heres how the scheme worked, according to PG&Es allegations in court filings. Bay Area Concrete also said that it continued to work for PG&E as other companies fled when the utility declared bankruptcy in January 2019. In August 2017, Bay Area Concrete hired an environmental engineer, Tim Bauters, to oversee the process. PG&E alleges that Huggins was aware of Kooista's actions and did not disclose them. In a statement, PG&E spokesperson James Noonan called the alleged actions of Bay Area Concrete "completely unacceptable. Days before the Paradise fire was officially declared contained on Nov. 25, an attorney for Singh and Johal, Steven Benjamin of Sacramento, filed papers with the state for a new real estate company, Regal Rose LLC. 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. 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. The site was shut down by police and its operator, James Lucero, was convicted of violations of the federal Clean Water Act. View the profiles of professionals named "Yadwinder Singh" on LinkedIn. At the time, PG&E owed Bay Area Concrete nearly $4 million, according to bankruptcy filings. 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. In February 2020, PG&E canceled Bay Area Concrete's contracts and publicly announced its belief that the waste company had committed fraud. 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. The site was shut down by police and its operator, James Lucero, was convicted of violations of the federal Clean Water Act. The company is owned and managed by the husband-wife team Yadwinder "Kevin" Singh and Preet Johal, according to local and state documents. "This is in addition to avoiding the significant negative environmental impacts that trucking and processing these materials elsewhere in the state would have caused," he wrote. 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