Amelco Industries

Two Los Angeles-area firms have agreed to plead guilty and pay fines that could total more than $1.5 million for rigging competitive bids on electrical contracting projects, federal prosecutors said Monday. The firms, Kirkwood Electric Service Corp. of Cerritos and Amelco Industries of Gardena, were charged Monday in complaints stemming from an 18-month investigation of the electrical contracting industry in Southern California, authorities said.

Thousand Oaks has agreed to pay $2.8 million to settle a lawsuit with Amelco Electric stemming from work the contractor did on the Civic Arts Plaza, officials have announced. Gardena-based Amelco sued the city in 1996, a year after the Civic Arts Plaza was completed, claiming it was not bound by the fixed price of its contract because the city made too many changes to plans. The company was paid $7.2 million for its work and sought an extra $2.7 million.

Thousand Oaks has agreed to pay $2.8 million to settle a lawsuit with Amelco Electric stemming from work the contractor did on the Civic Arts Plaza, officials have announced. Gardena-based Amelco sued the city in 1996, a year after the Civic Arts Plaza was completed, claiming it was not bound by the fixed price of its contract because the city made too many changes to plans. The company was paid $7.2 million for its work and sought an extra $2.7 million.

Two Los Angeles-area firms have agreed to plead guilty and pay fines that could total more than $1.5 million for rigging competitive bids on electrical contracting projects, federal prosecutors said Monday. The firms, Kirkwood Electric Service Corp. of Cerritos and Amelco Industries of Gardena, were charged Monday in complaints stemming from an 18-month investigation of the electrical contracting industry in Southern California, authorities said.