NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The owner of an Illinois-based technology company has pleaded guilty in a plot to bribe school officials in Louisiana and Arkansas in exchange for awarding computer contracts.
Barrett C. White faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine following his guilty plea Thursday to conspiring to defraud the federal E-Rate program, which subsidizes Internet services for schools and libraries.
Prosecutors said the 51-year-old White delivered bribes and kickbacks to school officials for awarding E-Rate contracts to businesses owned by two conspirators.
Court records don't identify the conspirators or school districts where the officials worked.
White's sentencing by U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon in New Orleans is set for June 9.