SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AP) – Two shipping companies have paid nearly $3.7 million in civil penalties related to fraudulent contracts for U.S. Department of Defense efforts in Afghanistan.

Federal prosecutors in the southern district of Illinois announced the fines against Farrell Lines and Damco USA on Thursday.

Acting U.S. Attorney Jim Porter says the two contractors were paid to move Defense Department cargo on behalf of the U.S. Transportation Command, which is based at Scott Air Force Base in St. Clair County.

Federal investigators determined that 563 weight tickets submitted by Farrell Lines to support billing invoices for individual cargo containers were falsified by employees of Damco, its subcontractor.

An attorney for Farrell Lines, which is based in Norfolk, Virginia, declined comment.
Officials from Netherlands-based Damco could not be reached Thursday.