Do Washington D.C. metropolis officers not learn Jalopnik? In the event that they did, they most likely wouldn’t have entered right into a contract with a specific gentleman we’ve written about earlier than. DC’s WUSA experiences that Lawrence Hardge — a person who isn’t me— has managed to safe a contract with the town’s public works division the place he would supply them with a purported “EV vary extender” for DC’s fleet of Chevy Bolts. Or: the Gas Shark, however for electrical automobiles.

For these of you simply tuning in, Lawrence Hardge is one a part of a bigger EV startup referred to as Mullen Automotive. He’s additionally somebody that I’ve been repeatedly mistaken for in current months, leading to bizarre Fb messages and pal requests from folks all the world over.

Hardge says he’s an inventor. Apart from a fireplace extinguisher, his important declare to fame is being founder and CEO of an organization referred to as International EV Expertise and inventing what he calls Ever-Cost Expertise. This system is claimed to increase the vary of any EV battery by “rejuvenating” it. This “rejuvenation” is achieved by… who is aware of. However Washington DC’s Division of Public Works thought the concept sounded authentic and entered right into a contract with Hardge earlier this yr.

WUSA managed to discover a deleted video submit from Hardge in late April exhibiting him within the garages of the DC public works. DC officers needed Hardge’s units put in on parking enforcement automobiles: Chevy Bolts. From WUSA:

DC authorities awarded a contract in February with Hardge’s firm. The contract says it’ll price $14,000 per automobile to put in his modules and $3,000 per automobile for “knowledge monitoring.” That’s a complete of $680,000 taxpayer {dollars} to refit 40 D.C. parking enforcement automobiles. The contract additionally provides Hardge’s firm unique area in D.C.’s upkeep bays.

WUSA took Hardge’s claims about his range-extending system to the College of Maryland’s electrical engineering labs, who debunked them; the system couldn’t really prolong vary. WUSA requested GM if it was conscious of the claims Hardge was making about extending the Bolt’s vary; the corporate stated it wasn’t conscious and isn’t participating in it.

A spokesperson for the general public works division instructed WUSA that they solely grew to become conscious of Hardge, his firm and tech after he did a presentation final yr.

“We realized in regards to the EV Applied sciences modules when the corporate made a presentation through the 2022 Washington Auto Present,” the spokesperson stated. Metropolis officers additionally weren’t conscious that Hardge is a convicted felon, one thing that they are saying they’ll now be trying into.

Courtroom paperwork present Hardge was sentenced to 26 years in jail for a felony conviction in 2001. He was discovered responsible of promoting unregistered securities from his dwelling state of Mississippi. Hardge served 5 years in jail and tried to expunge, or wipe, his legal document in 2021. A Mississippi choose rescinded Hardge’s short-term felony expungement in March 2022, after a choose’s order exhibits allegations surfaced that Hardge used enterprise investor’s cash to repay the folks he defrauded in 2001.

WUSA9 requested the D.C. authorities whether or not it knew that Mississippi courtroom data think about Hardge a convicted felon earlier than it signed a contract with him.

A spokesperson with DC Workplace of Contracts and Procurement responded that the division wasn’t conscious of that till the day WUSA9 knowledgeable them and that it’s “actively investigating the state of affairs.

As for Hardge, he issued a press release when requested if he may present and clarify how his system labored, claiming he’s “underneath a strict non-disclosure settlement. I can’t focus on something relating to D.C.”