5 Years Jail for Katrina Subcontractor

A subcontractor convicted of conspiring to bribe two Army Corps of Engineers consultants has been sentenced to five years in prison.

U.S. District Judge Carl J. Barbier on Wednesday also ordered Durwanda Heinrich to pay a $5,000 fine.

Heinrich was found guilty April 1 of conspiring to bribe Raul Miranda and Kern Wilson for confidential information about bids for a $16 million contract to rebuild a levee after Hurricane Katrina. Heinrich allegedly promised to pay the men nearly $300,000 apiece, or 25 cents for every cubic yard of material used to reconstruct the Lake Cataouatche levees, which protect New Orleans suburbs and towns west of the Mississippi River.

Prosecutors said Heinrich was hoping to secure a subcontract for the project when she showed the information to one of the bidders before the contract was awarded. The contractor reported her overture to authorities.

Wilson also was found guilty in the case and sentenced to five years and 10 months in jail. Miranda pleaded guilty to a bribery charge and is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 9.