Bay Area Construction Companies Charged With Fraud

Five people associated with two Northern California-based construction companies were charged with fraud and conspiracy for allegedly misclassifying employees as contractors to avoid paying workers’ compensation insurance and payroll taxes, the Contra Costa District Attorney’s Office announced. Three people at Atlas Pavers in Concord — Candido Silva, 57, Itamar De Morais Junior, 42, and Irma Ruiz-Alarcon, 42 — allegedly paid more than $12 million to unlicensed and misclassified construction workers from 2016-2019, prosecutors said in a statement. “The complaint ...