Ohio drops company accused of rigging state contracts

COLUMBUS (AP) — State officials say a contractor accused of scheming to rig over-priced state contracts is no longer working for Ohio.

Tom Hoyt, spokesman for the Department of Administrative Services, said today Stonyhurst Consulting’s work for the state has concluded.

The Columbus Dispatch reports the department also is reviewing possibly disbarring Stonyhurst from future contract work – as suggested by Inspector General Randall Meyer in his recently released investigative report.

Stonyhurst co-owner Steven Zielenski declined to comment to the newspaper. A man answering the phone Sunday at Stonyhurst said the company declined to comment.

Meyer’s report accused an Advocate Solutions employee of colluding with an official and employees from the Virginia-based Stonyhurst to ensure that Stonyhurst received two state contracts. Columbus-based Advocate Solutions says it fired the employee for unethical behavior.