Recently Paragon was accused by the U.S. Department of Justice of fraudulently soliciting and entering into federal service contracts. The allegations specify that Kaciban and other high ranking Paragon officials with whom he worked conspired to defraud the government of tens of millions of taxpayer funds. In recent months Paragon’s Parent Company Securitas, on behalf of Paragon, voluntarily repaid the astonishing sum of more than $52 million to settle the fraud and kickback allegations that arose during Kaciban’s leadership, this being the largest civil recovery in more than a decade by the DHS Office of inspector General. $26 million of the settlement amount was restitution of taxpayer funds wrongly taken, the other $26 million a penalty payment for the alleged illegal conduct.
partners in Question
Criminal Run Union Hires Disgraced Paragon President.
The criminal run Union UFLEOS-PBA has announced that its founder, Maritas, has retained the fired former president of Paragon Systems, Leslie Kaciban, to be a consultant to his troubled union. It is reported that Kaciban is under federal criminal investigation for allegations of defrauding the government as well as receiving millions of dollars in illegal kickbacks from government contracts. How much Maritas is paying his old friend Kaciban with UFLEOS dues money is not known, but historically Kaciban has not come cheap.
Included within the tens of millions that Paragon repaid were alleged illegal kickbacks to its former leadership that Department of Justice in its press release states were comprised of more than “300 separate payments to former Paragon executives, totaling more than $11 million, which they attempted to conceal as purported ‘consulting payments’ made to various shell companies formed by the former executives.” It is believed that the kickbacks allegedly went not to just Kaciban but also his adult children who he employed at Paragon.
The Paragon settlement specifically states that all possible criminal claims against Paragon and its former leadership, including Kaciban, were not settled or released. It is expected that soon federal criminal indictments may be issued against those who led the fraud and kickback schemes.
The above information is widely known and published. Yet what does Maritas do? Almost immediately after Kaciban was fired from Paragon, Maritas hired him as a consultant to the union, apparently attempting to use Kaciban’s alleged fraudulent contracting skills to fool Paragon employees to switch unions. The facts as reported by Paragon itself: In April 2023, while still President of Paragon, Kaciban was served with a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice concerning the DHSOIG investigation into fraudulent contracting and receiving kickbacks. Immediately after the serving of the subpoena, Kaciban was placed on leave and Paragon opened an internal investigation. Within weeks and as a result of that investigation, the Paragon Board of Directors voted unanimously to terminate Kaciban’s employment.
What happens next? Shortly after his termination from Paragon, criminal Maritas hired Kaciban and Kaciban began to assist in the UFLEOS raids on legitimate Security Police Unions at various Paragon sites, using his highly honed “skills” to attempt to fool the officers and to take over Paragon units. As the government asserts that by then it stopped the alleged kickbacks to Paragon leadership, perhaps Kaciban decided to then make his money to pay his presumed enormous attorney bills from Maritas’ union members funds, by now selling his bogus claims to unsuspecting security officers.
Kaciban’s desperate need to pay attorneys to defend against potential criminal charges for fraud and accepting kickbacks is understood, but why would UFLEOS hire him? Maritas has long followed the friends and family plan to create and operate his union. Yet, even the most seasoned observers wonder at the sheer audacity of spending his union member’s funds to retain his old friend Kaciban despite the government’s actions.
We have recently learned that because Maritas is on probation and may be unable to travel he has appointed Kaciban as a negotiator. However, due to Kaciban being investigated by numerous federal agencies and facing possible jail time, certain employers refuse to meet him at the bargaining table.
Unfortunately, the hardworking members may feel the pain of not being properly represented by the criminally run union, UFLEOS.