The U.S. Department of Justice issued the news release that follows.
Kris Bird, 62, the owner of a fuel truck supply firm, was sentenced this week in Boise to three months in prison and a $24,000 fine for his involvement in eight-year-long conspiracies to commit wire fraud, assign territories, and rig bids.
Additionally, Bird was ordered to turn up $1,542,387 in proceeds from his wire fraud convictions to the federal government. Bird was involved in conspiracies involving contracts to supply gasoline trucks to support the U.S. Forest Service’s operations to combat wildfires in the mountain west and Idaho.
In March 2025, two weeks prior to the start of his trial, Bird entered a guilty plea to the seven-count indictment. The plea came after an investigation that resulted in accusations against two executives in December 2023 and included information from a wiretap that was approved by the court.
Bird’s co-defendant, Ike Tomlinson, 61, was sentenced to 12 months in jail and a $20,000 fine earlier this month on June 5 for his leadership role in the unlawful behavior.
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According to Assistant Attorney General Abigail Slater of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, Mr. Bird embezzled public funds intended for vital wildfire suppression operations that safeguarded the American people in order to enrich himself. The Procurement Collusion Strike Force of the Trump Antitrust Division and its law enforcement partners will keep up the fight to make sure that the illegal use of taxpayer funds leads to criminal prosecution.
Assistant Director Jose A. Perez of the FBI Criminal Investigative Division stated that today’s sentencing demonstrates the FBI’s dedication to safeguarding the integrity of our markets. Antitrust infractions are federal offenses that distort competition, increase consumer costs, and undermine public trust; they are not only corporate wrongdoing. To hold those who manipulate the system for their own benefit accountable, we will keep collaborating with our law enforcement and regulatory partners.
Bid rigging is a crime that has victims. According to Assistant Inspector General for Investigations Jason Suffredini of the General Services Administration (GSA) Office of Inspector General (OIG), it defrauds taxpayers and law-abiding contractors. Those who commit procurement fraud will continue to be pursued by GSA OIG and our partners.
In order to inflate pricing and decide who would be given priority for business from the U.S. Forest Service and other government agencies in the case of a wildfire in a particular geographic area, the co-conspirators coordinated their bids, according to court records. In order to keep their conspiracy successful, the co-conspirators further coordinated to punish and exclude possible rivals. Bird covered up his bid-rigging conspiracy and wire fraud by submitting fake SAM certifications to the federal government every year between March 2015 and March 2023.
The matter was looked into by the General Services Administration Office of Inspector General, FBI Salt Lake City Field Office, Boise Resident Agency, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho, and Antitrust Division’s San Francisco Office. The case has been prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean M. Mazorol for the District of Idaho, Trial Attorneys Elena A. Goldstein, Daniel B. Twomey, and Matthew Chou of the Antitrust Division’s San Francisco Office, and Assistant Chief Christopher J. Carlberg.
Alongside today’s criminal sentence, the United States, acting on behalf of the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, and the U.S. Small Business Administration, reached a civil settlement with Kris Bird and other related entities and individuals in May 2025. The parties admitted to allegations that they obtained government contracts through bid-rigging, submitted false SAM Certifications, and improperly obtained a loan from the Paycheck Protection Program. In exchange, they agreed to pay $781,186 to resolve civil claims.
The civil matter was looked into by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho. The case is being handled by Civil Chief James Schaefer and Assistant United States Attorney Robert B. Firpo.
In order to prosecute antitrust violations and similar fraudulent schemes that affect government procurement, grant, and program funding at all levels of government—federal, state, and local—the Justice Department established the Procurement Collusion Strike Force (PCSF) in November 2019. Visit www.justice.gov/procurement-collusion-strike-force to find out more about the PCSF or to report instances of price fixing, market allocation, bid rigging, and other anticompetitive behavior involving government expenditure. The PCSF can be contacted at the aforementioned URL by anyone with information related to this inquiry.
