However, on Feb. 14, he died in what investigators said was a snowboarding accident in Oregon's backcountry slopes. The allegations track closely with the results of an investigation last year by ProPublica and the Bay City News Foundation, which found that PG&E had overlooked numerous warning signs when it hired Bay Area Concrete. He argued that there were legitimate differences in opinion over what zoning allowed for the site in Hayward. Bay Area Concrete opened a dump in Paradise to take the waste from the cleanup. "It was pretty much out of control the entire time they were in operation," he said. Later, the news agencies revealed a suspicious real estate transaction that connected Singh and one of the PG&E employees. You can cancel at any time. (Another skier died on the same slope that same weekend.) The allegations track closely with the results of an investigation last year by ProPublica and the Bay City News Foundation, which found that PG&E had overlooked numerous warning signs when it hired Bay Area Concrete. The company is owned and managed by the husband-wife team Yadwinder "Kevin" Singh and Preet Johal, according to local and state documents. Meanwhile, Kooistra and Bay Area Concrete grew a lucrative business relationship separate from PG&E, according to records and interviews. In its suit, Bay Area Concrete alleged that it had saved PG&E millions of dollars by doing disposal work in Paradise more cheaply than a competitor. In 16 years, the pair's business empire has grown from a single trucking firm to more than a dozen companies operating in 11 cities throughout the West Coast. But that same day, a spark ignited brush in the remote foothills of the Sierra Nevada in Northern California. The company says it is being more vigilant about trimming trees around its power lines and replacing outdated equipment before it crumbles. PG&E paid CCI $150,000 over five weeks without knowing that the company was owned by Kooistra, a violation of PG&E employment and supplier policies. They show that while the 2018 fire still burned in Paradise, an attorney for Bay Area Concretes owners registered a limited liability company at the business address of another one of the owners companies. Bay Area Concrete's contract with PG&E was terminated, and the company is under criminal investigation. "We have confronted the two PG&E employees supervising BAC with the evidence that they received large sums of money and gifts from the vendor; those employees are no longer with the company," Johnson wrote. PG&E did not say how much the utility believes it was overcharged by Bay Area Concrete as it continues to investigate. PG&E alleges that in exchange for these kickbacks, the employees provided lucrative clean-up jobs to Hayward-based Bay Area Concrete Recycling. In response to a long list of questions, PG&E provided a brief statement that did not directly address how warning signs like the company owners' long conflict with the city of Hayward and participation in an illegal dumping operation were overlooked. Under Kooistra's supervision, PG&E hired Bay Area Concrete to build a new slurry disposal center at a former Waste Management facility in Paradise. PG&Es filing is in response to a breach of contract lawsuit filed against the utility in October by Bay Area Concrete. "At the end of the day, this is really an illegal business that's asking to continue operating," Commissioner Gary Patton said at the meeting, "and it's been illegal since 2013.". Entire neighborhoods were reduced to ash and rubble. The accused PG&E employees, Ronald Huggins Jr. and Ryan Kooistra, did not respond to requests for comment. That year, the couple used a holding company to buy a property at 24701 Clawiter Road. The allegations follow an investigation into PG&E contending that the company had missed warning signs when it hired Bay Area Concrete, owned by couple Yadwinder "Kevin" Singh and Preet Johal,. Listing photos showed a home gym, billiard room and in-ground swimming pool with panoramic mountain views. Utility giant Pacific Gas & Electric accused two of its former employees of accepting bribes to funnel business to a waste-hauling company after the Camp Fire, the deadliest wildfire in California history. Ramsey said in an email that he received no further information from PG&E but had determined that his office did not have jurisdiction in the case. Public records show that the companys income increased substantially, from $16.5 million to $43.5 million, after receiving a contract to dispose of waste in connection with the Paradise fire. "Absolutely no photos or videos taken on these premises without permission," it says. He currently plays for Haryana Gold of India's UBA Pro Basketball League. PG&Es court filing alleges that Regal Rose LLC, a shell company established by Singh, was also in possession of a property in Arizona when it was transferred to Kooistra. Two days later, Kooistra quit his job, according to the complaint. Johnson's memo said that PG&E had alerted the California Public Utilities Commission, which oversees PG&E for the state, but CPUC officials said there was no investigation. He is affiliated with medical facilities such as Adena Regional Medical Center and Berger Hospital. As we have stated previously, PG&E will continue to hold ourselves and those that do work on our behalf to the highest ethical standards.. I'm Yadwinder Singh and I'm here to help you deliver better and faster solutions for your mobile and web app requirements!<br><br>I have 7 years of experience in total and over the span of time I have developed and deployed many products in Mobile app and Web app zone.<br><br>Technologies I am enrich with :<br><br>MERN/MEAN Stack:<br><br>1. PG&E bankruptcy filings from March 2019 showed that the utility owed Bay Area Concrete nearly $4 million. In February 2020, PG&E canceled Bay Area Concrete's contracts and publicly announced its belief that the waste company had committed fraud. As a result, the value of Bay Area Concrete's contracts with PG&E increased "exponentially" over a period of four years, the lawsuit said. PG&E did not say how much the utility believes it was overcharged by Bay Area Concrete as it continues to investigate. 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. My Official Page - Yadwinder Singh #14 Power Forward for Indian Senior Men's Basketball Team; Haryana Gold at UBA & Zarkawt BCA at MSL. The firm was tied to illegal dumping on federally protected wetlands and had engaged in a long conflict with regulators in the city of Hayward, where Bay Area Concrete operates a dump. According to the countercomplaint, Kooistra denied any wrongdoing or having an interest in the companies, despite the interest being disclosed in public records. T.J. Simmons, then-senior vice president of ConXtech, a neighboring business, wrote a letter to the city in 2018 to complain. As we have stated previously, PG&E will continue to hold ourselves and those that do work on our behalf to the highest ethical standards.. Singh and Johal built a slurry dumpsite at a PG&E substation in Petaluma, a small town about 40 miles north of San Francisco. Internal Medicine, Nephrology, Other Specialty (7) 2 Awards . He said the company may have overlooked some details as it grew its business. Journalist Camille Von Kaenel explains on The Four. The 24-year . In a letter to PG&E posted to the company's website, Olivero accused PG&E of falsifying accusations to avoid paying bills as the utility still owes the company a substantial sum. In an interview, Simmons said that dust blowing into the ConXtech factory, where the company manufactures steel structures for health care facilities and office buildings, would interfere with their machinery. Bay Area Concrete has denied the allegations of fraud and bribery in Paradise. But even without Bauters, Bay Area Concrete says its fight with PG&E is just beginning. On June 16, PG&E CEO and President William Johnson pleaded guilty on behalf of the company to 84 counts of felony manslaughter and one count of failing to maintain the lines that caused the fire near Paradise, known as the Camp Fire. The allegations track closely with the results of an investigation last year by ProPublica and the Bay City News Foundation, which found that PG&E had overlooked numerous warning signs when it hired Bay Area Concrete. PG&E paid CCI $150,000 over five weeks without knowing that the company was owned by Kooistra, a violation of PG&E employment and supplier policies. The wildfire grew rapidly, driven by winds that fanned flames across the region. Bay Area Concrete also said that it continued to work for PG&E as other companies fled when the utility declared bankruptcy in January 2019. "The litigation process will make this clear in time.". NodeJs<br>2. KTVU's Azenith Smith reports. A mound of crushed concrete got bigger and bigger and workers could no longer reach the top of it with hoses to control the dust. Huggins retired, and Kooistra sold his home and moved out of state after being confronted by PG&E investigators, the counterclaim by PG&E said. The new court filings show that PG&E had a longer business relationship with Bay Area Concrete than previously known. Hayward levied nearly $60,000 in fines over that period. Dr. Kevin Patrick Oreilly, MD . Bay Area Concretes contract with PG&E was terminated, and the company is under criminal investigation. Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. and Bay City News Service. You have permission to edit this article. "We're a hypergrowing company, we were exploding," Packal said. Bay Area Concrete overcharged for travel time while hauling and billed PG&E for work that was never done or was unnecessary. In response to a long list of questions, PG&E provided a brief statement that did not directly address how warning signs like the company owners long conflict with the city of Hayward and participation in an illegal dumping operation were overlooked. In its suit, Bay Area Concrete alleged that it had saved PG&E millions of dollars by doing disposal work in Paradise more cheaply than a competitor. Dust from recycled concrete, she said, may have polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, carcinogens that were banned in 1978. PG&E dumped truckloads of slurry waste as they began digging up damaged gas lines. A subordinate is accused of having received a bribe in an unorthodox property transfer of a multimillion-dollar house in a wealthy suburb of San Francisco. They throw lavish holiday parties for their employees and clients and sometimes give expensive presents, like $1,000 gift cards. Another shell company, CCI Management, was owned by Kooistra and acted as a subcontractor for Bay Area Concrete in Paradise. / CBS San Francisco, by Scott Morris, Bay City News Foundation. Kooistra resigned and his supervisor, superintendent of gas transmission and distribution Ron Huggins, also no longer works at PG&E, according to the news organizations investigation. Huggins retired, and Kooistra sold his home and moved out of state after being confronted by PG&E investigators, the counterclaim by PG&E said. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. In February, PG&E CEO William Johnson publicly accused Hayward-based Bay Area Concrete Recycling of defrauding the utility and bribing PG&E employees. In July 2018, the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board issued a notice of noncompliance saying that the Sacramento facility, still under construction, lacked proper state permits. PG&E first started disposing of waste in the company's Hayward yard in 2016, and the business expanded to include the cleanup of PG&E yards throughout Northern California. Kooistra was interviewed in January 2020 by PG&E investigators, who confronted him with evidence of his interest in companies connected to Bay Area Concrete. The sprawling complex includes parking for utility trucks, a repair station, outdoor storage for large spools of wires, pipes and other equipment, and a compressed natural gas vehicle fueling station. Kooistra did not respond to attempts to contact him by phone, mail or social media. ADVERTISINGAdvertiseObituariesWriting an ObituarySubmit an Obituary, COMPANY INFOJob OpportunitiesPrivacy PolicyTerms of Service, What to Include in Your North Bay Obituary, Crescent Moonshine: Duo delivers more than nostalgia, Thanks for Not Procreating: Making Census of the Moment. Dawn Sweatt, an attorney for Bay Area Concrete, said her clients "vehemently deny" the allegations by PG&E. Bay Area Concrete hired a manager of that site, Kevin Olivero, to be its CEO. Packal said PG&E attempted to use equipment Bay Area Concrete had installed on PG&E property in Petaluma, and the company sent PG&E a cease and desist letter. Four days later, he retired. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency opened an investigation. Bay Area Concrete, operating under the name Slurry Waste Solutions, built a specialized disposal facility in Paradise. Clearly what you are doing now is not working. PG&E then suspended business with the five sites, all competitors of Bay Area Concrete, pending the outcome of the water board's investigation. As a result, the value of Bay Area Concretes contracts with PG&E increased exponentially over a period of four years, the lawsuit said. Pay-Per-Chew: More restaurants trying subscription programs, Tesla moves global engineering headquarters to Palo Alto, Person shot to death in San Jose; 4th homicide of year. Bay Area Concrete has said that PG&E's accusations of fraud are false and the bankrupt utility was just trying to get out of paying its bills. In exchange, the lawsuit alleges, a company linked to Johal and Singh repaved Huggins driveway while they were supposed to be working on a PG&E job. The new court filings show that PG&E had a longer business relationship with Bay Area Concrete than previously known. Singh did not respond to requests for comment. And soon PG&E would be doing more business with Bay Area Concrete than ever. 1 Sabrina Hamipi 1 Inderbir Kaur 1 Inderbir Kour Excel Known Addresses for Yadwinder Singh 24701 Clawiter Rd Hayward, CA 94545 255 Happy Valley Rd Pleasanton, CA 94566 PO Box 1603 Union City, CA 94587 Advertisements Source California Secretary of State In 16 years, the pair's. Ownership of that new company was later transferred to a PG&E employee who oversaw Bay Area Concrete's work in Paradise. PG&E did not say how much the utility believes it was overcharged by Bay Area Concrete as it continues to investigate. The firm was tied to illegal dumping on federally protected wetlands and had engaged in a long conflict with regulators in the city of Hayward, where Bay Area Concrete operates a dump. Summary: How A Pg&E Contractor With A Sketchy Past Made Millions After California's Deadliest Fire, 'Zero visibility' conditions: All roads to Tahoe are closed, My meal at this landmark SF spot was too expensive to be so bad, One of the largest movie theaters in SF to close permanently, Report: Matthew McConaughey has a massive Salesforce paycheck, 'Really cool sight': Rare waterspout forms in Northern California, Horoscope for Wednesday, 3/01/23 by Christopher Renstrom, Man shot dead near San Francisco Ferry Building, A different horse': Bay Area will likely continue to see rain, 'Lady in the fridge' murder victim ID'd as Bay Area mother of 3, 'Life threatening': Tahoe braces for massive blizzard, Snow shuts down over 70 miles of I-80 in Northern California, These East Bay gems are a haven for music lovers. Not only did Lucero not have permission to dump there, but it was on wetlands adjacent to the wildlife refuge, which is home to endangered salt marsh harvest mice and burrowing owls. In Richmond, a Contra Costa County Environmental Health Division inspector was asked to leave while investigating complaints of an unpermitted solid waste facility. The pair were careful to keep Bay Area Concrete's purchase orders low enough that Huggins would not have to seek approval from his supervisors. PG&E also hired another company owned by Singh and Johal, PMK Contractors, to help build its command center for the fire, according to Packal. Yadwinder Singh Associated Addresses Po Box 1603, Union City, CA 94587109 Castlewood Dr, Pleasanton, CA 9456624701 Clawiter Rd, Hayward, CA 94545 Yadwinder Singh Associated Phone Numbers (408) 210-3938 (510) 797-4452 (408) 946-6632 Yadwinder Singh Associated Email Addresses economytrucking@sbcglobal.net kevin.singh@gmail.com mhamidi1@yahoo.com The Bay City News Foundation and ProPublica first reported the exchange, which one expert described as possible money laundering. PG&E operates a service center across the street from Bay Area Concrete's main facility in Hayward. "We were doing a ridiculous amount of volume at a much lower rate than what they could possibly have done." February 26, 2021 / 9:44 AM The unanimous vote to deny the permits was a potentially devastating blow to Bay Area Concrete. After the site was shut down, Singh and Johal hired Olivero to be the CEO of Bay Area Concrete. Operating under the name Slurry Waste Solutions, the company profited handsomely. 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