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. 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. He said the utility had offered to pay $9.3 million after the company made a statement accusing PG&E of trying to avoid outstanding fees. 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. 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. 32 years exp . This Dec. 3, 2018, file photo, shows homes leveled by the Camp Fire line at the Ridgewood Mobile Home Park retirement community in Paradise, Calif. A PG&E contractor accused of bribery and fraud during the Camp Fire cleanup had a history of illicit dumping, conflict with regulators and employed a senior manager connected to environmental crimes, according to a new investigation by the Bay City News Foundation and ProPublica. The full investigation is available here: https://www.propublica.org/article/how-a-pg-e-contractor-with-a-sketchy-past-made-millions-after-californias-deadliest-fire. Internal Medicine (18) 1 Award . Elisa Wilfong, who oversees Hayward's water pollution investigations, said her inspectors issued Bay Area Concrete repeated verbal warnings since 2015. The couple did not respond to requests for comment via mail, phone, email and social media. He currently plays for Haryana Gold of India's UBA Pro Basketball League. "The allegations are patently false and not supported by the evidence," she said. The blaze grew into the most destructive wildfire in state history and destroyed the town of Paradise. "We have already redirected the work to new vendors to make sure our efforts rebuilding in Paradise and Butte County will not be delayed." 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. Two days later, Kooistra quit his job, according to the complaint. The pair were careful to keep Bay Area Concrete's purchase orders low enough that Huggins would not have to seek approval from his supervisors. Clearly what you are doing now is not working. 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. According to the countercomplaint, Kooistra denied any wrongdoing or having an interest in the companies, despite the interest being disclosed in public records. The sprawling complex includes parking for utility trucks, a repair station, outdoor storage for large spools of wires, pipes and other equipment, and a compressed natural gas vehicle fueling station. On March 15, 2016, Lucero was indicted for violations of the federal Clean Water Act. Soon after buying the property, Singh applied to use it to recycle concrete, but Hayward officials opposed the plan. It turned out to be a lucrative business opportunity for Bay Area Concrete - thanks to Pacific Gas & Electric, the giant Northern California utility company whose electric lines had caused the conflagration. During public comment, Gerald Carroll, an attorney for another neighbor, D.W. Nicholson, pleaded with the commission to deny the appeal, citing concerns about the health of their employees from dust. In its suit, Bay Area Concrete alleged that it had saved PG&E millions of dollars by doing disposal work in Paradise more cheaply than a competitor. "It was definitely a battle with the city the whole time," Packal said. This article was produced in partnership with the Bay City News Foundation, which is a member of the ProPublica Local Reporting Network. 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. 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. Dawn Sweatt, an attorney for Bay Area Concrete, said her clients "vehemently deny" the allegations by PG&E. The county cited the company for illegal importation of dirt used in construction. In its suit, Bay Area Concrete alleged that it had saved PG&E millions of dollars by doing disposal work in Paradise more cheaply than a competitor. The driver would pick water up from PG&E yards to haul to Bay Area Concrete's Paradise facility for process and disposal. According to the disposal company, it racked up $14 million in unpaid invoices. After the site was shut down, Singh and Johal hired Olivero to be the CEO of Bay Area Concrete. Singh and Johal met Olivero for lunch along with his boss, Jim Lucero, at a high-end restaurant in Oakland. 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 small white sign on the fence reads "Slurry Waste Solutions" in orange. Nov 2021 - Present1 year 3 months. He sold his home in Rocklin and moved to Arizona. 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 wildfire grew rapidly, driven by winds that fanned flames across the region. The firm was tied to illegal dumping on federally. The unanimous vote to deny the permits was a potentially devastating blow to Bay Area Concrete. Packal said PG&E attempted to use equipment Bay Area Concrete had installed on PG&E property in Petaluma, and the company sent PG&E a cease and desist letter. Here's how the scheme worked, according to PG&E's allegations in court filings. Pay-Per-Chew: More restaurants trying subscription programs, Tesla moves global engineering headquarters to Palo Alto, Person shot to death in San Jose; 4th homicide of year. SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) -- 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. 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. Packal said the arrangement resulted in substantial savings for PG&E in the labor and gas for trips to faraway disposal sites. For years, the owners of Bay Area Concrete Recycling had run an unlicensed dump in the city of Hayward, California. 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. Bay Area Concrete opened a dump in Paradise to take the waste from the cleanup. 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. PG&E alleges that Kooistra and Huggins steered PG&E contracts to Bay Area Concrete and other companies controlled by Singh and Johal. At the time, PG&E owed Bay Area Concrete nearly $4 million, according to bankruptcy filings. 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. 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. The couple did not respond to requests for comment via mail, phone, email and social media. Yadwinder Singh Project Technician at F12.net Calgary, Alberta, Canada 235 followers 233 connections Join to view profile F12.net Seneca College About Customer service focused System. The company has had its headquarters in Hayward since 2012, where it operated an unpermitted concrete recycling plant from 2013 until it was shut down last year after years of fighting with the city. PG&E bankruptcy filings from March 2019 showed that the utility owed Bay Area Concrete nearly $4 million. Ownership of that new company was later transferred to a PG&E employee who oversaw Bay Area Concretes work in Paradise. 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. 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. 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. He debuted with the India's national basketball team in 2005 and played at the 2016 FIBA Asia Challenge in Tehran, Iran. But Lucero wasn't interested. Lucero, who pleaded guilty in a 2008 case involving the payment of bribes to landfill operators in San Jose, told one of Johal and Singh's employees that he had permission to dump on a national wildlife refuge site on the shores of San Francisco Bay. PG&E first started disposing of waste in the companys Hayward yard in 2016, and the business expanded to include the cleanup of PG&E yards throughout Northern California. "We will pursue every available action to remedy the situation and do right by those that we have the privilege to serve," Noonan said. PG&E alleges that Huggins approved false invoices and concealed fraudulent charges throughout PG&Es contract with Bay Area Concrete. Two days later, Kooistra quit his job, according to the complaint. The firm was tied to illegal dumping on federally. I'm Yadwinder Singh and I'm here to help you deliver better and faster solutions for your mobile and web app requirements!<br><br>I have 7 years of experience in total and over the span of time I have developed and deployed many products in Mobile app and Web app zone.<br><br>Technologies I am enrich with :<br><br>MERN/MEAN Stack:<br><br>1. Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. and Bay City News Service. PG&Es 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. Corporate records unearthed by the news organizations reveal new details about the alleged schemes. Filing 1 COMPLAINT against Bay Area Concrete, LLC, Bay Area Hyrovac, LLC, PMK Contractors LLC, Preet Johal, Yadwinder Singh (Filing fee $ 402, receipt number 0971-16273295). Please subscribe to keep reading. Dr. Kevin Patrick Oreilly, MD . Copyright Weeklys All rights reserved. The company declined to make Singh or Johal available for an interview. Internal Medicine, Nephrology, Other Specialty (7) 2 Awards . Singh did not respond to requests for comment. Responsible for early character designs and explorations for an upcoming animated TV series. A jury convicted Lucero, and he was sentenced to 30 months in prison. Olivero reached an agreement with federal prosecutors to testify against Lucero. "It is unfortunate that you decided to terminate our contract without first consulting us or making sure that your purported grounds had merit," he wrote. Rob Roth reports from Paradise. The utility owed Bay Area Concrete opened a dump in the city of Hayward, California Bay! 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