MEDFORD, Ore. (AP) — A former forester goes before a federal judge Monday for sentencing in a scheme that cost the government nearly half a million dollars. Prosecutors are asking for a five-year sentence and restitution.
The government says 57-year-old Luis Ramirez was a contract administrator for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management who used schemes such as approving contracts for work that was never done, billing twice for the same work and funneling work to his son.
Prosecutors say he used the proceeds for travel abroad, remodeling his Medford home, college for his son and a condo in the Bahamas.
He pleaded guilty in June to wire fraud and other charges. His son, Evan, also pleaded guilty to a tax charge. Prosecutors recommend probation for him.
