The founder of Colorado-based Octane International Ltd., a corporation whose primary business was raising money for the development of an alternative fuel additive called "vapor phase combustion," is facing indictment by a federal grand jury.
William C. Orr, 54, of Parker, Colo., was charged with 10 counts of mail fraud, four counts of wire fraud, and two counts of making false statements. He also faces five counts of tax evasion and six counts of failure to file tax returns.
Orr allegedly made a variety of untested claims regarding the additive, receiving nearly $560,000 from 43 investors between January 1998 and December 2004. He also successfully lobbied members of Congress and other employees of the federal government, obtaining a $3.6 million earmark to be used for further testing of the additive -- $2 million of which was dispersed.
The indictment also alleges that Orr evaded income taxes for the 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2004 calendar years, and failed to file income tax returns for calendar years 1999 through 2004, despite having personal income of more than $100,000 each year.The case was investigated by the U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado, the Postal Inspector-in-Charge in Denver; the Denver Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation unit and the assistant inspector general for investigations at the Environmental Protection Agency.
