Men charged in $1M kickback scheme for work on nuclear weapon projects in Kansas City
Prosecutors have charged two businessmen in an alleged kickback scheme to fraudulently award subcontracts for nuclear weapons manufacturing projects at the national security campus in south Kansas City.
Kansan Michael Clinesmith, an engineer at a firm working at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Kansas City National Security Campus, allegedly steered subcontracts from his employer for mechanical devices to a machining and tooling shop in St. Louis.
Clinesmith, 67, who records show lives in Johnson County, got kickbacks and bribes from Richard Mueller, 63, who worked at the Missouri shop, from at least 2011 to early 2021, according to federal prosecutors. During the scheme, Clinesmith was paid more than $1 million, according to an indictment unsealed Thursday in federal court in Kansas City, Kansas.
The company Clinesmith worked for, and allegedly defrauded, is responsible for “manufacturing non-nuclear components that went into the nation’s nuclear weapon stockpile,” prosecutors wrote.
Described as a longtime employee of that engineering firm, Clinesmith is accused of telling Mueller how much to bid on subcontracts for the devices, which are designed to “measure the components of nuclear weapon products to ensure the end products met design standards,” according to the indictment. Mueller then “secretly” funneled money to Clinesmith, prosecutors allege.
At times, Mueller allegedly added an “upcharge” of hundreds to thousands of dollars to bids, even though the shop performed “little to no design work under the subcontract,” prosecutors wrote.
Both men were charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and honest services wire fraud, as well as four counts of wire fraud and honest services wire fraud. If convicted, they each face up to 20 years in federal prison.
Mueller was also hit with one count of making false statements to agents for allegedly lying to investigators about the number of affected subcontracts. He faces five years in prison if convicted of that charge.
The men did not have attorneys listed in court records who could be reached for comment Thursday morning. They are set for an initial appearance in court Monday.
Prosecutors asked anyone who think they may be a victim in the case to contact the victim witness unit of the Justice Department’s fraud section by calling 888-549-3945 or emailing victimassistance.fraud@usdoj.gov.
