State of Maryland v. Hardutt Singh

State of Maryland v. Hardutt Singh is a two-year-long FBI sting operation based on flagged financial issues with the DC Metro system that ultimately led to a not guilty verdict. Hardutt Singh, of Potomac Construction, allegedly bribed a WMATA official in the hopes to influence future decisions on contracts. Potomac Construction has worked with the government and WMATA for years and has finished about $75 million worth of upgrades to the DC public transit system in that time.
Investigation and charges
In late 2018 Hardutt Singh was charged with bribing a public official. This bribe supposedly was offered on December 16, 2016, but charges were filed the following year. At the time, Singh was the vice president of Potomac Construction in Hyattsville, Maryland, and he allegedly bribed a DC Metro (WMATA) official in the hopes to influence decisions made on future projects and resolve a long-term problem between the two businesses. The DC Metro employee was later identified as Erick Wilkes, who was really an FBI informant.
There was a joint investigation put on by the Department of Transportation, FBI, and WMATA inspector general to delve into the illegal activity and see what effects occurred. The FBI had been involved in undercover operations for over two years in regards to Potomac Construction and WMATA’s business relationship.
At the time of the indictment Potomac Construction had 15 different projects underway which added up to over $17 million in upgrades to the metro and bus transit systems.
Verdict
Erick Wilkes, who was working with the FBI, had recorded conversations between him and Singh. These tapes were used as evidence of bribery but lost their weight when the defense contradicted them. Glenn Ivey defended Hardutt Singh, and explained that even though this bribe was discussed, it never occurred. And, because there was no evidence any money had ever passed from Singh to Wilkes, the defense explained that Singh followed WMATA protocol instead to handle a dispute with the metro system.
Since there was no proof of a physical bribe, Singh was acquitted of these charges.

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