BALTIMORE — A former state employee, brother and company were all convicted of bribery related to purchasing personal protective equipment (PPE) by the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DPSCS) during the pandemic.
James DiPino, 62, Paul DiPino Jr., 56 and AB Medical, LLC all pleaded guilty. James and Paul were sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Assets seized by the state from the both brothers totaled $2,625,538.57.
James was ordered to pay an additional $1,239,242.07 in restitution.
AB Medical, LLC was sentenced to the maximum fine of $10,000 and ordered to pay $3,000,000 in restitution.
In spring of 2020, James was employed by the DPSCS as a Senior Program Manager.
During the beginning of the pandemic, James chose the vendors to get the equipment (masks, gloves, respirators), for the department.
He ultimately chose AB Medical LLC, a company secretly associated with his brother Paul.
Starting on April 2020, James started a total of 11 purchases from his brother's company. James favored AB Medical LLC, even declining offers from other vendors at lower prices.
Over the course of these transactions, James pushed to expedite payments to AB Medical LLC, even though the terms of the purchase orders gave the state 30-days to make payment.
AB Medical, LLC received its final payment from the State of Maryland on August 25, 2020.
Between September 1, 2020, and September 3, 2020, AB Medical, LLC transferred $3 million to James.
He then used this money to purchase a 2020 Four Winns FSA H350 boat for $278,540, among other things.
“At the height of the pandemic, when many Marylanders struggled to stay afloat, the DiPino brothers selfishly redirected funds away from the State for their own financial gain” said Attorney General Anthony G. Brown. “My office and our law enforcement partners will continue to hold accountable those who attempt to defraud state government of its resources.”
