A Florida man, Steven Lukens, has been sentenced to 21 months in federal prison and ordered to pay over $960,000 in restitution and forfeitures for defrauding NASA’s Artemis mission with substandard parts.
Lukens, the former CEO of Gulf Atlantic International Supply, LLC, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in February. He admitted to providing parts that did not meet NASA’s strict quality standards and submitting forged documents to deceive the primary contractor.
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These parts were intended for critical systems in the Artemis mission and Orion spacecraft, including those involving highly hazardous hypergolic fluids.
The fraudulent actions resulted in Gulf Atlantic receiving at least $271,024 in payments.
“Ensuring the integrity of NASA’s component procurements and quality control is a top priority for the NASA Office of Inspector General (OIG),” stated Assistant Inspector General for Investigations Robert Steinau of NASA-OIG.
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“This case highlights the OIG’s dedication to collaborating with the U.S. Attorney’s Office to investigate and prosecute companies that defraud NASA.
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