Company Owned by Teaneck Man Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Military

A Leonia-based defense contracting company owned by a Teaneck man pleaded guilty today to military contract procurement fraud for swapping cheap vehicle parts for the parts originally ordered by the military, federal prosecutors said.

Hace Galip Dedekarginoglu, 57, of Teaneck, entered a guilty plea on behalf of the company, New York Machinery, LLC, before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton in Newark federal court, according to court documents.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, NYM will make full restitution to the Department of the Defense for the more than $160,000 in losses.  The company is facing a fine of between $400,000 and $500,000, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a statement.

NYM also entered into a civil settlement that requires the company to pay the government $200,000 to resolve allegations that NYM violated the False Claims Act, the statement said.

According to court documents, Dedekarginoglu's company entered into contracts with the military to provide replacement parts for military vehicles.  He was supposed to supply "exact products" but instead sold cheaper "reverse engineered" products made by a company he owned in Turkey.

The fraud took place from around Sept 12, 2001 through March 2005, federal prosecutors said.

According to the plea agreement, prosecutors will move to dismiss a past indictment against Dedekarginoglu.

Defense attorney Patrick A. Mullin did not immediately return a message seeking comment Friday afternoon.  An e-mail to the company was also not returned. 

A copy of the plea agreement is attached to this article.