2 Former Los Alamos Employees Plead Guilty
Two Los Alamos National Laboratory employees implicated in a purchasing scandal at the nuclear weapons lab have pleaded guilty to mail fraud and conspiracy charges in exchange for having other charges dropped, an assistant U.S. attorney said Tuesday.
Peter Bussolini, 66, a facilities manager, and Scott Alexander, 42, a purchaser, pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to mail fraud and conspiracy to commit a felony for purchases that cost the lab up to $200,000, said U.S. Atty. Fred Federici, who prosecuted the case.
In exchange for the pleas, U.S. attorneys said they agreed to drop 26 other charges against each defendant.
The two men face a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for mail fraud. Conspiracy charges carry a five-year maximum sentence.
The two were fired in 2002. Sentencing is scheduled for late January, attorneys said.
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