A private contractor has been accused of falsely certifying security company guards in lifesaving techniques before they were then sent to protect Department of Homeland Security and Department of Veterans Affairs buildings in Washington.
Douglas E. Brown was an authorized provider of cardiopulmonary resuscitation training for the American Red Cross. According to an indictment filed in the District’s federal court, Brown claimed to have trained at least 10 Blackhawk Inc. security guards in the life-saving procedures they were contractually required to know. In reality, the indictment says, Brown was submitting false training information to the Red Cross, causing the nonprofit to issue unearned credentials.
The Maryland-based company’s contract was overseen by the Federal Protective Service, which required Blackhawk to provide biographical information on each guard and the completion dates of required training, including CPR. Blackhawk, according to the indictment, hired Brown to train its employees in CPR through the company Brown owned and operated, DB Training Services.
The guards who were not properly trained went on to work at federal buildings between April 2007 and February 2008, the indictment said.
Brown has been charged with making false statements and wire fraud for allegedly causing the government to send payments to Blackhawk even when he knew the company’s federal contract had been breached because of the lack of training. Calls to Blackhawk were not immediately returned Thursday.
According to the company’s Web site, guard candidates “must pass a comprehensive series of course work covering everything from human behavior, use of force, search and seizure, first/aid/CPR.”
It adds that “we rigorously screen potential candidates and perform thorough background checks.”
The names of the guards whom Brown allegedly claimed he was training in CPR were not included in the indictment.
Brown was taken into custody late last week and released on personal recognizance.
