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Construction company owner indicted on mail fraud charges (UPDATE)

By: Eric Heisig//October 30, 2014//

Construction company owner indicted on mail fraud charges (UPDATE)

By: Eric Heisig//October 30, 2014//

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A Janesville carpentry company owner who allegedly lied about benefits he gave to his employees on federal housing projects has been indicted by a Madison federal grand jury.

Christopher Fields, owner of FJ Lincoln LLC, set up a retirement plan for his employees as a fringe benefit in 2010 and had money deducted from employees’ paychecks to go into the plan. However, between February 2010 and March 2012, he allegedly never put the deducted money into the retirement plan, despite taking $336,261 from his employees’ paychecks, according to the indictment entered Wednesday.

FJ Lincoln was a subcontractor on several public housing projects throughout the state, Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Jarosz said, and the scheme to take the money is part of the prosecution. However, the basis of the charges is from the company’s work on City Row Apartments in downtown Madison in 2010.

Fields was indicted on five mail fraud charges Wednesday because of compliance forms he sent to the project’s general contractor, Krupp General Contractors LLC, Madison, that allegedly lied about paying his workers prevailing wages and fringe benefits for their work.

Each of the five mail fraud counts carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence. He has a Nov. 12 court date in front of federal magistrate Judge Stephen Crocker.

Fields could not be reached for comment Friday. It was not immediately clear whether he had retained an attorney for the case.

FJ Lincoln was formed in 2003 in Delaware, but it was unclear Friday whether the company still is doing business. According to the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institution’s website, the company’s business license was revoked in 2012. State court records show that Fields and FJ Lincoln have numerous tax warrants and unpaid civil judgments.

The 83-unit City Row Apartments was completed in 2010. The project was notable at the time because it was given an Energy Star rating from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, in lieu of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification from the U.S. Green Council.

The building’s owner, Joe Krupp, did not return a phone call Friday.

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