Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Western District of New York
February 17, 2022
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that the Nightingale Corporation, headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, has paid a $969,609.42 settlement to the United States to resolve allegations of government procurement fraud arising under the False Claims Act.
Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Coriell, who handled the case, stated that Nightingale is a manufacturer of office seating and furniture, which sells its products to various federal government agencies. In December 2019, Nightingale was awarded a General Services Administration (GSA) contract to supply office chairs to various federal agencies, including the Department of Defense. The contract required that Nightingale produce the chairs in the United States. The Government alleged that during the bidding process, Nightingale falsely represented to the GSA that it would produce the chairs at its Tonawanda, NY, location. Based on that representation, Nightingale was awarded the contract. However, between February 2020 and April 2021, Nightingale did not produce the chairs in Tonawanda or elsewhere in the United States, but rather the chairs were produced in Canada.
“When the federal government agreed to purchase Nightingale’s products, it did so with the understanding that the purchase would support American workers, but that did not happen,” stated U.S. Attorney Ross. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to ensuring that any company being paid with taxpayer dollars, honors its contracted commitment.”
This case was investigated by the General Services Administration, Office of Inspector General; Department of Defense Office of Inspector General Defense Criminal Investigative Service; U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division; and the U.S. Air Force, Office of Special Investigations.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.
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Source: U.S. Attorney's Office press release
