Lance Armstrong sued by US for Postal Service sponsorship
The聽U.S. government聽filed court documents Tuesday laying out its case against cyclist聽Lance聽Armstrong, who is accused of defrauding the聽Postal Service聽by taking millions of dollars in sponsorship money while flouting professional cycling rules by doping.
The U.S. Department of Justice said in February it would join a whistleblower lawsuit brought in 2010 by聽Armstrong's former teammate,聽Floyd Landis, and on Tuesday filed its formal complaint.
Armstrong聽has been stripped of his seven Tour de聽France聽titles and was banned for life from cycling in 2012 after accusations he had cheated for years. In January, he said the accusations were true in an interview with television host Oprah Winfrey.
Armstrong聽and his teammates from Tailwind Sports were paid $40 million by the聽Postal Service聽from 1998 to 2004, according to the suit.聽Armstrong's salary during that time, excluding bonuses, was $17.9 million, according to the complaint.
The government is suing under the False Claims Act and can recoup up to three times the amount it lost as a result of the fraud. The complaint also alleges breach of contract, unjust enrichment and fraud.
Attorneys for聽Armstrong聽could not be immediately reached for comment Tuesday evening.
The complaint echoes Landis' claims that聽Armstrong聽and others defrauded the聽U.S. government聽by falsely denying the doping accusations and continuing their sponsorship relationship with the聽Postal Service.
When the government believes a suit has merit, it may take over the litigation. The individuals, or whistleblowers, get a portion of the proceeds if the case is successful.
The U.S. complaint accuses聽Armstrong聽of using at least one prohibited substance or method in connection with every Tour de聽France聽between 1999 and 2005. "Moreover, he knew that his teammates were engaged in similar doping practices, and he actively encouraged and facilitated those practices," the complaint said.
"(T)he United Stated suffered damage in that it did not receive the value of the services for which it bargained," the complaint said.
A lawyer for Landis,聽Paul Scott, said in statement that he was "pleased to see the聽United States聽take this important step toward recovering taxpayer dollars lost to fraud."
The case is U.S. ex rel Landis v.聽Tailwind Sports Corp, U.S. District Court for the聽District of Columbia, No. 10-976. (Reporting by Jessica Dye in New York; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
