Two men pleaded guilty to federal charges of conspiring to manufacture and sell counterfeit oilfield pipe couplings, the US Department of Justice said.
It said that Harold B. Greene of Tulsa and James Robert Roy of Tomball, Tex., each pleaded guilty on Aug. 12 before US District Judge Keith B. Ellison in Houston to one charge of conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods and commit fraud.
The pair admitted they conspired with another individual, who DOJ did not name, to manufacture and sell oilfield pipe couplings with American Petroleum Institute certification marks without a license or other authorization.
DOJ noted that API’s equipment certification program is designed to protect operators from injuries and catastrophic losses due to substandard, unsafe products.
It said that the petroleum trade association’s monogram certifies that exploration and production equipment meet certain API standards. Couplings which do not meet those standards are sold at substantially lower prices. Only manufacturers which API licenses only after they meet strict quality control standards and which the association continues to monitor are authorized to manufacture products carrying an API certification mark, DOJ said.
It said that Greene and Roy acknowledged in their plea agreement that they not only manufactured and sold pipe couplings containing an API certification mark without a license, but also profited at customers’ expense by using substandard materials on many of their couplings.
DOJ said that each defendant faces up to five years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 5.
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