The Region - News from Sept. 12, 1985

A father and son who operated an Orange County steel supply company were sentenced to prison after they pleaded guilty to charges that they sold inferior steel to the Pentagon. Federal authorities argued that the steel, which was not heat resistant, “potentially jeopardized” the lives of U.S. military personnel because the steel had crucial uses in nuclear submarines and B-52 bombers. U.S. District Judge Richard A. Gadbois Jr. in Los Angeles sentenced Donald R. Bigalke, 53, president of District International Supply Co. of Costa Mesa, to 1 1/2 years in prison and his son, Timothy D. Bigalke, 30, who was the firm’s vice president, to six months’ imprisonment. They were also ordered to pay back more than $236,000 to the government.