El Paso contractor sentenced for defrauding federal correctional institutions

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- 72-year-old El Pasoan Jack McCager Kidd will spend the next 24 months in federal prison for defrauding two correction institutions. Kidd will also pay a $5,000 fine.

Federal prosecutors say Kidd, who owned a company that contracted with the Bureau of Prisons, agreed to build two gas pipelines to prisons in Pennsylvania and Alabama, then falsely invoiced the institutions for more natural gas than was actually delivered. Court documents also state that Kidd refused to give the prisons information about the amount of natural gas delivered and how he determined his billing rates.

Federal agents arrested Kidd October 28, 2021 and he pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud on August 30, 2023. He had initially been charged with 72 counts. Kidd received a plea agreement, which required him to pay $11,397,374 in restitution.