Northrop Buyer Accused of Accepting Kickback

Federal agents have arrested a Northrop Corp. defense systems division employee accused of accepting a kickback from a bidder on a defense contract, a federal official said Wednesday.

Claudis E. Jones, 43, a buyer for Northrop, was arrested Tuesday by agents of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service with the help of the U.S. marshal from Chicago, said Thomas McNelley, an assistant special agent for the service.

“He (Jones) was arrested on charges that he solicited and accepted a kickback from a bidder on a Northrop defense contract,” McNelley said.

A supplier tipped Northrop about Jones’ suspected wrongdoings through the company’s hot line, Northrop spokesman Tony Catafio said.

“It’s an example of the system working,” he said.

“We worked with the Defense Inspector General until the conclusion, which resulted in (Jones’) arrest,” Catafio said.

Jones was taken to the federal Metropolitan Correction Center in Chicago and released on a $4,500 personal recognizance bond, McNelley said.

Additional details were being withheld pending further probing by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the investigative arm of the Department of Defense Inspector General.

Jones, who was fired from his position at Northrop on Wednesday, is scheduled to be arraigned on Dec. 29. The maximum penalty for kickbacks is 10 years in prison, McNelley said.