Jurors find Flintco not guilty in fraud case involving UNM
Posted at: 03/05/2013 3:15 PM
| Updated at: 03/05/2013 5:23 PM
By: KOB.com staff
Jurors have found Flintco construction company not guilty in a suit that accused the company of taxpayer fraud in a deal to renovate The Pit at the University of New Mexico.
The legal action was brought by a taxpayer fraud group that alleged then-UNM president David Schmidly spent more than $60 million on the project, even though the bid awarded to Flintco was capped at $44.3 million.
UNM had said the $16 million difference between the "guaranteed maximum" and the $60 million final cost was in part due to so-called “soft costs”such as architectural planning fees, consulting fees and taxes paid to entities other than Flintco.
Stay with KOB for reaction to the verdict.
UPDATE: Former UNM president David J. Schmidly has issued the following statement:
“Because the unions that brought this frivolous lawsuit lacked the courage to name me as a Defendant, I was forced to watch silently as my good name -- and that of my son -- was run through the mud in a politically motivated attack.
“Judge Singleton already threw out all the unions’ false accusations that I had somehow helped Flintco obtain this contract, and nobody should be surprised by the jury’s verdict rejecting the rest of their claims. This confirms what I would have said, if I been given the chance.
“I had no role in the approval or negotiation of the Flintco contract. Nor did I have anything to do with my son’s subsequent employment by Flintco, which took place 8 months after the contract was awarded, in an open and transparent manner with the approval of the Board of Regents, and in full compliance with the University’s long-standing Conflict-of-Interest policies.”
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