New Hampshire Man Sentenced for Obstruction Of Justice In Connection With U.S. Department Of Labor Wage and Hour Investigations and Lawsuit

CONCORD, NH – The U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire has sentenced Kevin Corriveau, owner and operator of Kevin Corriveau Painting Inc. of Nashua, to six months imprisonment; two years of supervised release, post-imprisonment; and a $25,000 criminal fine for one count of obstruction of justice.

Corriveau pled guilty on Dec. 15, 2017, to obstructing two U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigations and a subsequent civil lawsuit filed by the Department of Labor’s Office of the Solicitor for alleged violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). In his plea, Corriveau admitted that he caused an employee of his company to provide false information to WHD investigators in 2009 and 2011 and knowingly created and provided fraudulent information to the Department of Labor attorneys in 2013 in connection with the civil suit.

In a related case, Sharon Mercuri - Corriveau Painting Inc.’s company treasurer and office manager - pled guilty and was fined $10,000 on Dec. 21, 2017, for two counts of criminally violating the FLSA, including willfully failing to pay proper overtime and knowingly making a materially false statement in connection with the WHD’s investigation.

“This prosecution, conviction, and sentence send a message to all employers that knowingly providing false information or falsified documents to the U.S. Department of Labor can put their individual liberty at risk,” said Daniel Cronin, Wage and Hour Division Northern New England District Director.

“The Department of Labor’s agencies stand ready to refer criminal prosecutions to the Office of the Inspector General and U.S. Attorney’s offices cases in which employers lie to investigators and fabricate records as part of a scheme to cover up their violations,” said Michael Felsen, Regional Solicitor of Labor in Boston. “We greatly appreciate the New Hampshire U.S. Attorney’s Office’s efforts to bring to justice such an individual in this matter.”

“Kevin Corriveau solicited his employees to make false statements to investigators during a WHD investigation which uncovered over $200,000 in unpaid wages. The Office of Inspector General will continue to investigate those who obstruct the Department’s efforts to ensure the integrity of its programs,” said Peter Nozka, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, New York Region, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General.

The Department’s Office of the Inspector General investigated the criminal case with assistance from the Department’s Office of the Solicitor and Employee Benefits Security Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert M. Kinsella of U.S. Attorney Scott W. Murray’s office and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Miller prosecuted the cases. Miller is a Senior Trial Attorney at the Department of Labor’s Office of the Solicitor in Boston.