John Delk, 40, of Cleveland, Tn., was sentenced today in U.S. District Court, Chattanooga, to serve two years of probation and 100 hours of community service by Judge Curtis Collier.
The sentence was the result of a guilty plea by Delk on Nov. 9, 2011, to a federal indictment charging him with falsifying work records at the Tennessee Valley Authority Watts Bar nuclear facility.
As part of the plea agreement, Delk stipulated that in August he fraudulently and knowingly signed a work closure form certifying that work had been completed when, in fact, the micrometer measurements were not completed and were forged.
The certification of micrometer readings of cables such as the one in this case was and is relied upon to both ascertain the degradation of the cables and to determine the precise equipment needed to protect areas where the cable was to be spliced.
U.S. Attorney Bill Killian said, "It is particularly disturbing that a federal contract employee would falsify information serving the containment area of a nuclear facility. In addition, the defendant was a supervisor of other employees. This case reminds federal contract employees that actions such as these could result in conviction of a federal felony."
The indictment and guilty plea were the result of a 13-month investigation conducted by the TVA Office of the Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney James T. Brooks represented the United States.