Perini executive convicted of fraud

A federal jury convicted a construction executive Wednesday in a scheme to use sham minority front companies as subcontractors to get government contracts in metropolitan New York and on Long Island.

Zohrab Marashlian, 66, was convicted on five criminal charges of fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, court officials said Thursday. He faces 25 years in prison, a fine of up to $23 million and criminal forfeiture of $11.5 million.

The trial in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn took four weeks. A sentencing date has not been set.

The contracts were for road construction in the metro area and were to have involved subcontracts awarded to disadvantaged business entities but in fact were awarded to non-minorities.

Marashlian committed the crimes while he was president of the civil division of the national construction company Tutor Perini Corp., based in Sylmar, Calif.

Long Island was the focus of the investigation into the company, which until a recent merger was the Perini Corp., based in Framingham, Mass.

Marashlian's division got the fraudulent contracts from 1994 to 2007 at a cost of more than $19 million in taxpayer funds. During that time he earned $14 million in salary and bonuses.

With Robert E. Kessler