EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. — A former ALDI executive and an Illinois contractor have been sentenced for defrauding the grocery chain through a bid-rigging scheme that cost the company over $2.8 million. The construction projects were for grocery stores throughout southern Illinois and Missouri.
Louis R. Ross, Sr., 64, of St. Louis, received a two-year prison sentence, while Donald E. Schniers, 73, of Breese, Illinois, was sentenced to three years of probation. Both men must pay $2.8 million in restitution to ALDI.
Ross, who served as Director of Real Estate for ALDI’s O’Fallon, Missouri division, worked with Schniers, owner of C. Juengel Company, to create fake construction bids that ensured Schniers’ company would win contracts. Over four years, from 2014 to 2018, C. Juengel Company secured 12 contracts worth approximately $20 million through the scheme.
The pair created false bids under the names of other construction companies without their knowledge and altered legitimate bids from competitors. Schniers’ company always submitted the lowest bid, guaranteeing they would win the contracts.
In exchange for directing contracts to C. Juengel Company, Ross received monthly kickbacks of $9,000 from Schniers over a decade, totaling more than $975,000.
Ross pleaded guilty to multiple counts of mail and wire fraud and conspiracy, while Schniers pleaded guilty to conspiracy and individual counts of mail and wire fraud. After his prison term, Ross will serve three years of supervised release.
The FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service conducted the investigation.
