An indictment is a formal accusation or charge based on a finding by a Grand Jury that it is likely that the person charged committed the criminal offense described in the indictment and is the means by which an accused person (defendant) is brought to trial. An indictment raises no inference of guilt. As in all criminal cases, each defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
An information is a formal accusation of a crime by a government attorney rather than a Grand Jury. An information raises no inference of guilt. As in all criminal cases, each defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
A charge is an accusation of criminal activity and raises no inference of guilt. As in all criminal cases, each defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Each count is a separate and distinct offense charged in an indictment or information.
A guilty plea is a defendant’s admission to the court that he or she committed the offense charged and an agreement to waive the right to a trial.
A conviction is a judgment based on a jury’s verdict, judge’s finding, or the defendant’s admission that the defendant is guilty of the crime charged.
A sentence is a judicial determination of the punishment to be imposed on an individual who has plead guilty or has been convicted by a jury or judge of a criminal offense.
On December 22, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, Estes Evans, former Treasurer of International Association of EMTs and Paramedics Local R7-33 (located in Milwaukee, Wisc.), pleaded guilty to one count of embezzling $44,446 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office.
On December 21, 2017, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Allegheny County, Pittsburgh Municipal Court, Russell Gloeckl, former maintenance employee for Boilermakers Local 154 (located in Pittsburgh, Pa.), pleaded guilty to one count of receiving stolen property, in violation of 18 Pennsylvania Criminal Code 3925(a). He was then sentenced to one year of probation. The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On December 18, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Lonzell Moore, former President of American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 1730 (located in Des Plaines, Ill.), was sentenced to three years of probation and he was ordered to serve 200 hours of community service. He was also ordered to pay remaining restitution in the amount of $15,088. On July 12, 2017, Moore pleaded guilty to embezzlement of $18,857, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On December 15, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, Marianne Rodacy, former Financial-Recording Secretary of United Steelworkers Local 10-53-G (located in Charleroi, Pa.), pleaded guilty to one count of embezzling $13,109 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On December 14, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington, Jason Richard, former Secretary-Treasurer of United Steelworkers Local 12-990 (located in Wallula, Wash.), pleaded guilty to one count of embezzling over $40,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On December 14, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois, Wendy Buch, former Financial Secretary-Treasurer of Transportation Communication Union (TCU) Local T-574 (located in Shiloh, Ill.), pleaded guilty to one count of embezzling funds in the amount of $11,957, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and one count of false reports, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(b). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis Office.
On December 13, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, William Uggiano, former Treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 1699 (located in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.), was sentenced to two years of probation with 50 hours of community service. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $7,350 and a $100 special assessment. On September 6, 2017, Uggiano pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1349. The sentencing follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On December 12, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Michael Evans, former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 1699 (located in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.), was sentenced to two years of probation with 50 hours of community service. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $65,775 and a $100 special assessment. On September 6, 2017, Evans pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1349. The sentencing follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On December 5, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois, Anthony Edmunds, former President of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 2419 (located in Danville, Ill.), was indicted on one count of embezzling $19,482 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On December 1, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, Henry Clay Green, Sr., former Financial Secretary-Treasurer of Union of Needletrades, Industrial, and Textile Employees - Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees (UNITE HERE) Local 26 (located in Medford, Mass.), pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement from a labor organization for embezzling $171,455 from the union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Employee Benefits Security Administration.
On November 29, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Marcus Nabried’s petition seeking a reduction in the statutory disability, pursuant to 29 U.S.C. Section 504(a), to seek employment with American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 1199C (located in Philadelphia, Pa.), was denied. Nabried’s disqualification under Section 504 is result of his August 25, 2011 conviction, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, for bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1344. The denial of the petition follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On November 29, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota, Eastern Division, Douglas Morin, former Treasurer of the United Steelworkers Local 9520 (located in Fargo, N.D.), was sentenced to five years of probation (probation will terminate after one year, provided that the restitution is paid in full). He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $7,519 and a $25 special assessment. On August 17, 2017, Morin pleaded guilty to one count of Falsification of Financial Records Required to be Kept by Labor Union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On November 28, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Montana, Alicia Rooney, former office secretary for Plumbers Local 459 (located in Missoula, Mont.), pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement from a labor union in the amount of $171,804, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis District Office.
On November 21, 2017, in Circuit Court for Prince George's County, Maryland, Fonda White, former Secretary-Treasurer of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 2390 (located in Maugansville, Md.), pleaded guilty to one count of theft with a value of at least $10,000 but less than $100,000, in violation of Maryland Criminal Law Section 7-104(g)(1)(i), for stealing $46,271 from the union. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
On November 21, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island, Richard D’Antuono, former Business Manager/Financial Secretary of Operative Plasterers and Cement Masons (OPCM) Local 40 (located in Cranston, R.I.), was charged in a three-count criminal information with embezzlement of union funds (29 U.S.C. 501(c)), theft from an employee benefit fund (18 U.S.C. 664), and aggravated identity theft (18 U.S.C. 1028A). The total amount of embezzled funds is between $250,000 and $550,000. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Employee Benefits Security Administration.
On November 21, 2017, in Circuit Court for Prince George's County, Maryland, Keith Franzese, former President of Security, Police and Fire Professionals of America (SPFPA) Local 275 (located in Greenbelt, Md.), was indicted on one count of theft of at least $100,000, two counts of theft of at least $10,000 but less than $100,000; six counts of theft of at least $1,000 but less than $10,000; five counts of theft of more than $500; and one count of embezzlement/fraudulent misappropriation by a fiduciary for stealing $104,834 from the union, in violation of Maryland Criminal Law Sections 7-104(g)(1)(iii), 7-104(g)(1)(ii), 7-104(g)(1)(i), 7-104, and 7-113, respectively. The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
On November 15, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, Henry Clay Green, Sr., former Financial Secretary-Treasurer of Union of Needletrades, Industrial, and Textile Employees - Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees (UNITE HERE) Local 26 (located in Medford, Mass.), was charged in an information with one count of embezzling $171,455 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Employee Benefits Security Administration.
On November 14, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Brenda Schaefer, former Treasurer of National Rural Letter Carriers Association (NRLCA) Local 39 (located in Chesterfield, Mich.), was sentenced to one year of probation and was ordered to pay $11,570 in restitution and a $25 special assessment. On July 10, 2017, Schaefer pled guilty to one count of willful failure to maintain union records, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(a). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office.
On November 14, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Norfolk Division, Tamika Bullock, former Secretary-Treasurer of International Brotherhood of Boilermakers Local 684 (located in Chesapeake, Va.), pled guilty to one count of embezzlement from a labor organization for embezzling $24,600 from the union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
On November 13, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, Stephanie DeBoer, former office manager and bookkeeper for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 876 (located in Edmore, Mich.), pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds in the amount of approximately $307,563, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On November 9, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Roderick Bennett, former Chief of Staff for the Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA), located in Washington, D.C., was charged in a criminal information with one count of embezzling $141,335 from the union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office, the Employee Benefits Security Administration, and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On November 7, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona, Patrick Remigio, former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 2859 (located in Phoenix, Ariz.), was sentenced to 18 months of imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. Remigio was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $95,000 and a special assessment of $100. On October 19, 2016, Remigio pled guilty to wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Phoenix Resident Investigator Office, Department of Homeland Security's Office of Professional Responsibility, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
On November 7, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, Columbia Division, Gordon Cairns, former President of United Steelworkers Local 1089 (located in Harrisburg, N.C.), was charged with one count of embezzlement in the amount of $63,999, one count of failure to maintain records, one count of making false statements, and one count of destruction of records, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), 439(a), 439(b), and 439(c), respectively. The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta-Nashville District Office.
On November 3, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, Danny Woodcock, former President of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 83770 (located in Columbus, Miss.), was indicted on 48 counts of embezzlement of union funds, in the amount of $297,469, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On November 1, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Western Division, Ronald Coldren, former Financial Secretary of Steelworkers Local 207 (located in Findlay, Ohio), was indicted for one count of embezzlement in the amount of $30,639. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office.
On October 31, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Stephen A. Royer, former Secretary-Treasurer of Machinists Lodge 243 (located in East Prospect, Pa.), was sentenced to one year and one day of incarceration followed by three years of supervised release. Royer was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $130,869 and a special assessment of $100. On June 19, 2017, Royer pled guilty to one count of embezzlement, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On October 31, 2017, in Rush County Circuit Court, Rushville, Indiana, David Maddy, former Financial Secretary-Treasurer of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 2339 (located in Rushville, Ind.), pled guilty to Theft, a Class D Felony, in violation of I.C. 35-43-4-2(a), for embezzling union funds in the amount of $37,197. Maddy was then sentenced to 30 months of imprisonment (suspended) and 30 months of probation, and he was ordered to pay a $500 fine (suspended) and $950 in probation fees and court costs. Maddy was also ordered to pay the remaining restitution of $12,197 owed after Local 2339’s successful claim for the full $25,000 amount of the union’s bond. He paid the ordered amount following the sentencing. The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office.
On October 31, 2017, after a seven-day trial in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Paul Moe Sr., a general foreman and member of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) Local 1804-1 (located in North Bergen, N.J.), was found guilty by a jury of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and 13 substantive counts of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343, stemming from his no-show job at the Port of Elizabeth terminal in New Jersey, with an annual salary of $500,000. The guilty verdict follows a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor.
On October 30, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, Fort Wayne Division, Fenna F. Saylors, former Treasurer of National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 378 (located in Marion, Ind.), was sentenced to two years of probation and was ordered to pay $6,050 in restitution and a $100 special assessment. Saylors paid $10,596 in restitution prior to sentencing. On March 29, 2017, Saylors pled guilty to one count of embezzlement in the amount of $16,647, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On October 30, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Carl DeRenzis, former Treasurer of International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) Local 1955 (located in Philadelphia, Pa.), pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds in the amount of $53,281, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On October 24, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut, Andrew J. Thibodeau, former Secretary-Treasurer of International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) Local Lodge 1433 (located in Kensington, Conn.), was sentenced to three months of incarceration followed by one year of supervised release with community service. Thibodeau was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $67,179 and a special assessment of $100. He previously paid $3,200 in restitution. On April 5, 2017, Thibodeau pled guilty to one count of embezzlement for an amount exceeding $70,000, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows a joint investigation by OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On October 24, 2017, in United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, Norman Baker, former Secretary-Treasurer of Glass, Molders, and Plastics (GMP) Local 220 (located in Axtell, Tex.), pled guilty to one count of embezzling $8,310 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On October 24, 2017, in the Hamilton County, Ohio Court of Common Pleas, Elizabeth Merrill, former Treasurer of Government Security Officers of America (UGSOA) Local 251 (located in Cincinnati, Ohio), was charged in a two-count indictment for forgery and theft of $1,051 in union funds, in violation of Ohio Revised Code 2913.31 and 2913.02, respectively. The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office.
On October 18, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, David Sager, former President of Steelworkers Local 5000 (located in Middleburg Heights, Ohio), was sentenced to two years of probation with the first five months to be served on home detention with electronic monitoring. Sager was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $17,189. On June 30, 2017, Sager pled guilty to obstruction of justice (18 U.S.C. 1512(c)(2)), false statements to law enforcement (18 U.S.C. 1001), and filing false tax returns (26 U.S.C. 7206(1)). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the IRS.
On October 17, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois, Wendy Buch, former Financial Secretary-Treasurer for the Transportation Communications Union (TCU) Lodge T-574 (located in East St. Louis, Ill.), was indicted on one count of embezzling $11,957 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and two counts of false statements, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(b). The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis District Office.
On October 17, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington, Jason Richard, former Secretary-Treasurer of United Steelworkers Local 12-990 (located in Wallula, Wash.), was charged in an information with one count of embezzling over $40,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On October 12, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of South Dakota Northern Division, Salvatore Zagra, former Treasurer of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 1959 (located in Watertown, S.D.), pled guilty to one count of theft of government property, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 641. He was then sentenced to five years of probation and was ordered to pay total restitution of $24,152, a $2,000 fine, and a $100 special assessment. The guilty plea and sentencing follow a joint investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office, the Department of Energy’s Office of Inspector General, General Services Administration’s Office of the Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
On October 10, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Carl DeRenzis, former Treasurer of International Union of Painters and Allied Trades Local 1955 (located in Philadelphia, Pa.), was charged in a one-count information with embezzling union funds in the amount of $53,281, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On October 10, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, Thomas M. Miller, former Financial Secretary-Treasurer of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) Division 815 (located in Joliet, Ill.), was sentenced to two years of supervised probation the first three months of which will be served in home confinement. Miller was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $21,070, a fine of $2,000, and a special assessment of $100. On May 19, 2017, Miller pled guilty to one count of embezzlement in the amount of $10,686, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On October 9, 2017, in the Ramsey County (Minnesota) District Court, Latasha Wilson, former Treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 1969 (located in Minneapolis, Minn.), was charged with one count of theft by swindle of more than $35,000, in violation of Minnesota State Statute 609.52.2(a)(4). The complaint alleges that Wilson stole union funds in the amount of $58,150 between January 2013 and December 2015. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office.
On October 6, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Maria Nunez, former office secretary for International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) Local Lodge 1484 (located in Wilmington, Calif.), was charged in a six-count indictment for embezzling $11,946 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). Additionally, Nunez was indicted on one count of willfully making a false entry in a record required to be kept, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On October 6, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Matt Smith, former Secretary-Treasurer of Transport Workers Local 576 (located in Hurst, Tex.), pled guilty to the one count of embezzling union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On October 4, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, Gregory Normand, former Secretary-Treasurer of International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers (SMART) Local 324-TD (located in Marysville, Wash.), was indicted for one count of embezzling over $443,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). Additionally, Normand was indicted for one count of making false statements to a government agency in a filed report, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(b), and one count of making false statements to a government agency, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1001. The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On October 4, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Matt Smith, former Secretary-Treasurer of Transport Workers Local 576 (located in Hurst, Tex.), was charged in a one-count indictment of embezzling $399,499 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On October 3, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Glenn Robert Smith, former comptroller for the Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters and Millwrights (MRCC), located in Warren, Mich., pled guilty to one count of embezzling $499,087 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Internal Revenue Service.
On September 27, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, Norman Baker, former Secretary-Treasurer of Glass, Molders, and Plastics (GMP) Local 220 (located in Axtell, Tex.), was charged in a one-count information with embezzling $8,310 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On September 25, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Alaska, Ann Reddig, former Secretary-Treasurer of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 918 (located in Anchorage, Alaska), pled guilty to one count of embezzling over $193,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing is scheduled for December 13, 2017. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On September 25, 2017, in the Franklin County, Ohio Court of Common Pleas, Michael Mathis, former Treasurer of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers (BLE) Division 34 (located in Columbus, Ohio), pled guilty to one count of theft in the amount of $5,784. He was immediately sentenced to 60 days of incarceration (suspended) and one year of probation. He was also ordered to pay $5,784 in restitution. The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office.
On September 21, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, John T. Coli, Sr., former Secretary Treasurer of Teamsters Local 727 (located in Park Ridge, Ill.), was indicted for knowingly attempting to obstruct, delay and affect commerce by extortion, that is obtaining of property of quarterly cash payments of $25,000 from an employer (18 U.S.C. 1951(a)); willfully requesting, demanding, receiving and accepting a thing of value and a sum of money from an employer, namely, payments totaling approximately $325,000 on several occasions between 2014 and 2017 (29 U.S.C. 186(b)(1) & 186(d)(2)); knowingly and willfully making materially false, fictitious and fraudulent statements and representations of matter in his U.S. Department of Labor – OLMS Form LM-30, for fiscal years 2014, 2015, and 2016 when he failed to disclose approximately $100,000 in employer payments received during each fiscal year (18 U.S.C. 1001(a)(2)); and willfully making and subscribing, and causing to be made and subscribed, false U.S. Individual Income Tax Returns, for calendar years 2014, 2015 and 2016, in which reported income was substantially lower than actual income received (26 U.S.C. 7206(1)). Coli was previously indicted on July 12, 2017. The superseding indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the FBI.
On September 21, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Bobby Buford, former President of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 2419 (located in Danville, Ill.), was sentenced to 21 months of incarceration and three years of supervised release, and he was ordered to pay restitution of $129,723 and a $100 special assessment. On November 10, 2016, Buford pled guilty to one count of mail fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1341, for diverting over $129,723 in unions funds for personal use. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On September 14, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, Raymond C. Ventrone, former business manager of International Brotherhood of Boilermakers Local 154 (located in Pittsburgh, Pa.) pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds in the approximate amount of $1,499,000, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and one count of tax evasion in the approximate amount of $265,343, in violation of 26 U.S.C. 7201. The guilty plea follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office, Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
On September 12, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, Marianne Rodacy, former Financial-Recording Secretary of United Steelworkers Local 10-53-G (located in Charleroi, Pa.), was indicted on one count of embezzling $13,109 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On September 7, 2017, in the Jefferson County, New York District Court, Ronald G. Watson, former Treasurer of International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 105F (located in Fort Drum, N.Y.), pled guilty to criminal possession of a forged instrument in the third degree. He was then sentenced to one year of conditional discharge and was ordered to pay $30,000 in restitution within 10 days. The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office.
On September 6, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Michael Evans and William Uggiano, former President and former Treasurer, respectively, of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 1699 (located in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.), both pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1349. The guilty pleas follow a joint investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On September 6, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Maine, Ryan Jones, former Secretary-Treasurer of International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) Lodge S-6 (located in Bath, Maine), pled guilty to one count of embezzling $280,865 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
On August 31, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Monique Tyson, former secretary for Painters District Council 3 (located in Raytown, Mo.), was sentenced to one year of probation. Tyson had previously paid restitution in the amount of $7,500. On March 21, 2017, Tyson pled guilty to one count of falsifying union records, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Kansas City Resident Investigator Office.
On August 30, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Montana, Alicia Rooney, former office secretary for Plumbers Local 459 (located in Missoula, Mont.), was indicted on one count of embezzlement in the amount of $112,153 from a labor union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and one count of embezzlement in the amount of $59,650 from an employee benefit plan, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 664. The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis District Office.
On August 29, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, Pascale Mcatee, former President of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART) Local 161 (located in Everett, Wash.), was sentenced to five months in federal prison followed by three years of federal probation. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $73,583 and a special assessment of $100. On April 7, 2017, Mcatee pled guilty to a single count of embezzlement, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On August 29, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Virdell King, a former senior official in the Chrysler Department of the United Auto Workers (UAW) International Union (located in Detroit, Mich.) and a former Assistant Director of the UAW-Chrysler National Training Center (NTC), pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the Labor Management Relations Act, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371. King’s sentencing is scheduled for January 3, 2018. The guilty plea follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Internal Revenue Service.
On August 28, 2017, in the Superior Court for the County of Pierce in the State of Washington, Casey Cortese, former President of Association of Civilian Technicians (ACT) Local Chapter 108 (located in Tacoma, Wash.), was sentenced to 240 hours of community service and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $27,514. On May 30, 2017, Cortese pled guilty to a single count of Theft in the 1st Degree, in violation of Washington State Criminal Code 9A.56.020 (1)(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On August 23, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado, Violet Lamorie, former Secretary Treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 695 (located in Denver, Colo.), was sentenced to 10 months of home confinement and five years of probation, and she was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $71,430 and a $100 assessment. On November 30, 2016, Lamorie pled guilty to one count of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis District Office and the Department of Treasury’s Office of Inspector General.
On August 21, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, Edward Padilla, former Secretary-Treasurer/Business Manager of Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 220 (located in Bakersfield, Calif.), was sentenced to 21 months of imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. Padilla was also ordered to pay $168,780 in restitution and a $100 special assessment. On March 27, 2017, Padilla pled guilty to embezzling $168,780 from the union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On August 18, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Virdell King, a former senior official in the Chrysler Department of the United Auto Workers (UAW) International Union (located in Detroit, Mich.) and a former Assistant Director of the UAW-Chrysler National Training Center (NTC), was charged in an information with one count of conspiracy to violate the Labor Management Relations Act, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371, stemming from her receipt of over $40,000 in prohibited payments and things of value from Alphons Iacobelli, former Vice President of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles US LLC (FCA), and others acting in the interest of FCA. The prohibited payments and things of value, which occurred or were received between 2012 and 2015, included purchases of clothing, jewelry, luggage and other personal items, as well as golf equipment, luggage, concert tickets, theme park tickets, and other items for the personal benefit of other UAW officials. The payments were made using the bank account and credit card accounts of the NTC, which was established to provide for the education, training, and retraining of Chrysler workers. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Internal Revenue Service.
On August 18, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, John Hamilton, former business manager of International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 324 (located in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit extortion, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371 and 18 U.S.C. 1951. The guilty plea follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Employee Benefits Security Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Internal Revenue Service.
On August 17, 2017, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Allegheny County, Pittsburgh Municipal Court, Russell Gloeckl, former maintenance employee for Boilermakers Local 154 (located in Pittsburgh, Pa.), was charged in a criminal complaint with one count of theft by unlawful taking and one count of receiving stolen property, in violation of 18 Pennsylvania Criminal Code 3921(a) and 3925(a), respectively. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On August 17, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota, Eastern Division, Douglas Morin, former Treasurer of the United Steelworkers (USW) Local 9520 (located in Fargo, N.D.), pled guilty to a one-count information for falsification of financial records required to be kept by a labor union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On August 16, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota, Eastern Division, Douglas Morin, former Treasurer of the United Steelworkers (USW) Local 9520 (located in Fargo, N.D.), was charged in a one-count information with falsification of financial records required to be kept by labor union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On August 8, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Jerome Durden, former Financial Analyst in the Corporate Accounting Department of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles US LLC (FCA), former Controller of the United Auto Workers (UAW) -Chrysler National Training Center (NTC), and former Treasurer of the Board of Trustees of the Leave the Light On Foundation (LTLOF), pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States by impairing, impeding, and obstructing the Internal Revenue Service by preparing and filing tax returns for the UAW-Chrysler NTC and the LTLOF between 2009 and 2015 that falsely concealed millions of dollars in prohibited payments directed to former UAW Vice President General Holiefield (now deceased), former FCA Vice President Alphons Iacobelli, and others, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371. Durden also pled guilty to one count of failure to file an income tax return for 2013, in violation of 26 U.S.C. 7203. His sentencing is scheduled for December 12, 2017. The plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Internal Revenue Service.
On August 8, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Maine, Ryan Jones, former Secretary-Treasurer of International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) Local Lodge S6 (located in Bath, Maine), was indicted on one count of embezzling $280,865 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The indictment follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
On August 2, 2017, in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, Maryland, Sophia Love, former President of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 2751 (located in Baltimore, Md.), was indicted on one count of theft of at least $10,000 but less than $100,000, in violation of Maryland Criminal Law Article, Section 7-104. The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
On July 28, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Michael Evans and William Uggiano, former President and former Treasurer, respectively, of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 1699 (located in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.), were both charged in a one-count information for conspiracy to commit bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1349. The charges follow a joint investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On July 28, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Iowa, Curtis Lang, former President of the United Dairy Workers of LeMars (located in LeMars, Iowa), was sentenced to one year of confinement, six months of home confinement, three years of supervised release, and he was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $95,223 and a $100 special assessment. On May 8, 2017, Lang pled guilty to one count of embezzlement, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis District Office.
On July 27, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Angela Parrish-Wilson, former office manager of Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Workers Union (RWDSU) Joint Council 932 (located in Birmingham, Ala.), pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and one count of bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1344. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Tampa Resident Investigator Office.
On July 26, 2017, in the District Court of Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, William Bryles, former President of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 2406 (located in Oklahoma City, Okla.), was charged and pled no contest to four counts of felony embezzlement, in violation of Oklahoma Penal Code, Title 21, Chapter 59, 1451. He then signed a three-year deferred sentence order and was ordered to pay $11,174 in restitution and court costs. The charge, plea, and deferred sentence follow an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On July 26, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Western Division, Guy Gokey, former Financial Secretary of Glass Molders and Plastics (GMP) Local 59 (located in Toledo, Ohio), pled guilty to one count of embezzlement in the amount of $14,074, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office.
On July 26, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Alphons Iacobelli, former Vice President of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles US LLC (FCA), was charged with one count of conspiracy to violate the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA) and two counts of violating the LMRA for paying and delivering over $1.2 million in prohibited payments and things of value to the late General Holiefield, former Vice President of the United Auto Workers (UAW) International Union (located in Detroit, Mich.), to Holiefield’s wife, Monica Morgan, and to other UAW officials, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371 and 29 U.S.C. 186(a)(2), (d)(1), respectively. The prohibited payments and things of value, which occurred between 2009 and 2014, included designer clothing, jewelry, furniture, and paying off the $262,219 mortgage on Holiefield and Morgan’s residence. The payments were made using the bank account and credit card accounts of the UAW-Chrysler National Training Center (NTC), which was established to provide for the education, training, and retraining of workers. Iacobelli was also charged with an additional count of conspiracy and four counts of failing to report on his 2012-2015 individual tax returns approximately $2.1 million in NTC funds that he diverted for his own personal benefit, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371 and 26 U.S.C. 7206(1), respectively. Iacobelli was charged with diverting those funds to pay for a Ferrari 458 Spider automobile costing more than $350,000, leasing a private jet, two limited edition Mont Blanc pens costing $37,500 each, a pool and hundreds of thousands of dollars in improvements to his residence, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in personal credit card expenses, among other purchases. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Internal Revenue Service.
On July 26, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Monica Morgan, wife of the late General Holiefield, a former Vice President of the United Auto Workers (UAW) International Union (located in Detroit, Mich.), was charged with one count of conspiracy to violate the Labor Management Relations Act stemming from her and Holiefield’s receipt of over $1.2 million in prohibited payments and things of value from Alphons Iacobelli, former Vice President of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles US LLC (FCA), and others acting in the interest of FCA, and from the use of three companies controlled by Morgan to conceal the prohibited payments and things of value, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371. The prohibited payments and things of value, which occurred between 2009 and 2014, included designer clothing, jewelry, furniture, and paying off the $262,219 mortgage on Holiefield and Morgan’s residence. The payments were made using the bank account and credit card accounts of the UAW-Chrysler National Training Center, which was established to provide for the education, training, and retraining of workers. Morgan was also charged with three counts of failing to report the income she received through those companies on her 2011-2013 individual tax returns and with one count of failing to file an income tax return for 2014, in violation of 26 U.S.C. 7206(1) and 7203, respectively. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Internal Revenue Service.
On July 24, 2017, in the LaPorte County Indiana Circuit Court, Thomas Rodgers, former General Chairman of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART) General Committee of Adjustment (GCA) 247 (located in LaPorte, Ind.), was charged in an information with a level 6 felony theft of $3,672, in violation of Indiana Code 35-43-4-2. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On July 21, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island, Christopher Hayes, former Rhode Island Police Department Sergeant and former President of Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Lodge 8 (located in Newport, R.I.), was sentenced to six months of imprisonment followed by six months of home confinement, three years of supervised release, 300 hours of community service, and he was ordered to pay $71,523 in restitution. On May 1, 2017, Hayes pled guilty to one count of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. Hayes admitted to the court that between August 2009 and December 2014, he used an FOP debit card to pay for his own personal expenses; wrote checks payable to himself from the FOP bank account; withdrew cash from the FOP bank account for personal use; and made online payments to his personal credit card from the FOP bank account, converting approximately $71,523 in union funds for his own personal use. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Rhode Island State Police.
On July 20, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware, Herbert White, former Financial Secretary of Steelworkers Local 4-8936 (previously located in Wilmington, Del.), pled guilty to a misdemeanor charging him with making a false entry in a union record, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). On the same day, White was sentenced to two years of probation and was ordered to pay a restitution balance of $23,287 and a $25 special assessment. White had already paid $2,247 in restitution. The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On July 20, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Paul Moe, a member of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) Local 1804-1 (located in North Bergen, N.J.) and general foreman for a Port Elizabeth terminal operator, was indicted on one count of wire fraud conspiracy and 13 counts of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343, 1349, and 2, for fraudulently submitting timesheets that resulted in paying him nearly $500,000 annually while the investigation disclosed that he either never showed up at the job site or was present for as little as eight hours per week. The charges follow a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Employee Benefits Security Administration, and the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor.
On July 18, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, Clementine T. Ray , former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 2109 (located in Temple, Tex.), was sentenced to three years of probation and was ordered to pay $4,067 in restitution. On May 31, 2017, Ray pled guilty to false writings, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1018. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On July 17, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Idaho, Ashley Cline, former office manager for Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 155 (located in Idaho Falls, Idaho), was sentenced to four years of federal probation and she was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $30,776 and a $1,000 fine. On January 25, 2017, Cline pled guilty to a single count of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On July 13, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Southern Division, Michael Lackey, former President of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 3901 (located in Oxford, Ala.), was sentenced to one year and one day in prison and three years of supervised probation. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $69,193. On January 31, 2017, Lackey pled guilty to five counts of bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1344, and one count of embezzlement in the amount of $69,193, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Birmingham Resident Investigator Office.
On July 12, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, Lonzell Moore, former President of American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 1730 (located in Des Plaines, Ill.), pled guilty to one count of embezzling $18,857 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On July 11, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Alaska, Jeffrey Davies, former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 183 (located in Anchorage, Alaska), was sentenced to one year in a federal penitentiary and three years of federal probation, and he was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $92,766 and a $100 fine. On June 7, 2016, Davies pled guilty to one count of embezzling over $92,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office and the FBI.
On July 10, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Brenda Schaefer, former Treasurer of National Rural Letter Carriers Association (NRLCA) Local 39 (located in Chesterfield, Mich.), pled guilty to one count of willful failure to maintain union records, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(a). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office.
On July 7, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Jay C. Roy, former Secretary-Treasurer of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation (SMART) Local 1245 (located in Locust Grove, Ga.), was sentenced to two months of imprisonment and two years of probation, and he was ordered to pay $83,417 in restitution and a $100 special assessment. On March 24, 2017, Roy pled guilty to one count of embezzlement of union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta-Nashville District Office.
On July 7, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, Lonzell Moore, former President of American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 1730 (located in Des Plaines, Ill.), was charged in a criminal complaint with embezzling $18,857 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On July 6, 2017, in Circuit Court for Prince George's County, Maryland, Fonda White, former Secretary-Treasurer of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 2390 (located in Maugansville, Md.), was indicted on one count of theft of property with a value of at least $10,000 but less than $100,000, one count of embezzlement, and two counts of theft of property with a value of more than $1,000 but less than $10,000, in violation of Maryland Criminal Law Section 7-104(g)(1)(ii), 7-113, and 7-104(g)(1)(i), respectively. The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office and the Prince George’s County Police Department.
On July 6, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Alaska, Ann Reddig, former Secretary-Treasurer of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 918 (located in Anchorage, Alaska), was charged in a superseding information with one count of embezzling over $193,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On June 30, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, David Sager, former President of Steelworkers Local 5000 (located in Middleburg Heights, Ohio), pled guilty to obstruction of justice, making false statements, and falsification of tax returns, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1512(c)(2), 18 U.S.C. 1001(a)(2), and 26 U.S.C. 7206 (1), respectively. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Internal Revenue Service
On June 28, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware, Lon Sullivan, former Treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 644 (located in Baltimore, Md.), was sentenced to three years of probation and 200 hours of community service, and he was ordered to pay the remaining balance of restitution in the amount $59,809. Sullivan previously paid $37,000 in restitution. On February 28, 2017, Sullivan pled guilty to wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. The subject union is comprised of Department of Labor employees. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On June 27, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, Kimberly Steinhoff, former Treasurer of United Steelworkers (USW) Local 87 (located in Munising, Mich.), was charged with one count of embezzlement of $12,751, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee Office.
On June 22, 2017, in the Nassau District Court in Hempstead New York, Jeanette Willoughby, former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 2009 (located in Garden City, N.Y.), was charged with petit larceny, in violation of N.Y. Penal Law 155.25, for diverting $2,487 in union funds for personal use. She then pled guilty to the charge and was sentenced to a one year conditional discharge. She was also ordered to pay $2,487 in restitution. The charge, guilty plea, and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office.
On June 21, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Norfolk Division, Tamika Bullock, former Secretary-Treasurer of International Brotherhood of Boilermakers Local 684 (located in Chesapeake, Va.), was indicted on one count of embezzling $24,600 from a labor union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
On June 20, 2017, in the Cuyahoga County, Ohio Court of Common Pleas, Arthur W. Boedecker, former Vice President of Utility Workers Union of America (UWUA) Local 270 (located in Brooklyn Heights, Ohio), pled guilty to one count of aggravated theft from a union in violation of Ohio Revised Code 2913.02 A(3). On the same date, Boedecker was sentenced to a jail term of three days and fined $500. The plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office.
On June 20, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois, Scott Alexander and Nancy Alexander, former President and former office administrator, respectively, for Teamsters Local 50 (located in Belleville, Ill.), were indicted for embezzlement and wire fraud, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c) and 18 U.S.C. 1343. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis District Office.
On June 20, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, Estes Evans, former Treasurer of International Association of EMTs and Paramedics Local R7-33 (located in Milwaukee, Wisc.), was charged with one count of embezzlement of $44,446 and one count of filing a false report, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c) and 29 U.S.C. 439(b), respectively. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee Office.
On June 19, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Stephen A. Royer, former Secretary Treasurer of Machinists Local Lodge 243 (located in East Prospect, Pa.), pled guilty to one count of embezzlement, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The loss amount will be determined at a later date. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On June 16, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, Kathleen Smith, former Secretary-Treasurer of Machinists Lodge 850 and the Oklahoma State Council of Machinists (located in Oklahoma City and Enid, Okla., respectively), was sentenced to four years of probation and 104 hours of community service, and she was ordered to pay $20,770 in restitution. On January 12, 2017, Smith pled guilty to embezzling union funds from both labor organizations, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On June 16, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, Michael R. Bennett, former President of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 2317 (located in Lafayette, Ind.), was sentenced to 15 months of incarceration, one year of supervised release, and was also ordered to pay restitution of $18,047 and a $100 special assessment. Bennett previously paid $84,807 in restitution. On November 21, 2016, Bennett pled guilty to one count of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343, for diverting over $100,000 in unions funds for personal use. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On June 13, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Jerome Durden, former Financial Analyst in the Corporate Accounting Department of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles US LLC (FCA), former Controller of the UAW-Chrysler National Training Center (NTC), and former Treasurer of the Board of Trustees of the Leave the Light On Foundation (LTLOF), was charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States by impairing, impeding, and obstructing the Internal Revenue Service by preparing and filing tax returns for the UAW-Chrysler NTC and the LTLOF between 2009 and 2015 that falsely concealed millions of dollars in prohibited payments directed to former UAW Vice President General Holiefield (now deceased), former FCA Vice President Alphons Iacobelli, and others, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371. Durden was also charged with one count of failure to file an income tax return for 2013, in violation of 26 U.S.C. 7203. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Internal Revenue Service.
On June 9, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Alaska, Ann Reddig, former Secretary-Treasurer of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 918 (located in Anchorage, Alaska), was charged in an information with one count of embezzling over $193,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and one count of Making a Forged Security, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 513(a). The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On June 7, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, Francis Mazzella, employer for members of Metal Polishers/Refinishers, Painters, Production and Novelty Workers, Sign Pictorial and Display, Automotive Equipment Painters Workers Union Local 8A-28A (located in Long Island City, N.Y.), was sentenced to three years of probation and was ordered to pay more than $400,000 in restitution. On February 27, 2012, Mazzella pled guilty to a two-count information charging him with Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and Mail Fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1349 and 18 U.S.C. 371. Mazzella owned and controlled City-Wide, a New York City contracting firm. City-Wide entered into an agreement with Local 8A-28A to perform construction work on their union hall. The investigation disclosed that Three Generations, another union contractor owned by Robert Fabrizio, actually performed the union hall renovation, rather than City-Wide. Mazzella submitted false invoices to the Local 8A-28A Welfare Fund claiming that City-Wide had performed the work resulting in being paid significantly inflated rates for work not completed by the company. Mazzella was also responsible for administering the payroll of Three Generations and would routinely pay employees all or a portion of their salaries in cash and did not disclose these payments to the IRS. The sentencing follows a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the IRS-CID, and the Employee Benefits Security Administration.
On June 7, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Juan Carlos Recinos, former Business Manager/Secretary-Treasurer of Iron Workers Local 201 (located in Washington, D.C.), was sentenced to two years of probation and 100 hours of community service. He was also ordered to pay a $1,000 fine. Recinos previously paid full restitution of $26,900. On February 24, 2017, Recinos pled guilty to one count of Fraud in the Second Degree, in violation of DC Code Sections 22-3221(b) and 22-3222(b)(2). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On June 2, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Brenda Schaefer, former Treasurer of National Rural Letter Carriers Association (NRLCA) Local 39 (located in Chesterfield, Mich.), was charged in a one-count information with willful failure to maintain union records, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(a). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office.
On May 31, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, Clementine T. Ray , former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 2109 (located in Temple, Tex.), pled guilty to a superseding information of false writings, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1018. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On May 25, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Rocky Defilippo, Amtrak Police Officer and member of Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Lodge 189 (located in Metuchen, N.J.), was charged in a criminal complaint with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of making false statements for submitting a fraudulent letter to Amtrak claiming prior police service to obtain back pay and an increased salary level totaling more than $45,000, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343 and 18 U.S.C. 1001, respectively. The complaint follows an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the Amtrak Police Department, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
On May 25, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, John A. Matassa, Jr., Secretary Treasurer of Independent Union of Amalgamated Workers Local 711 (located in Mount Prospect, Ill.), was charged in an indictment with two counts of wire fraud, two counts of theft of approximately $3,291 in government funds in the form of Old-Age Insurance Benefits, four counts of embezzling $2,959 in union funds, and two counts of making false entries in union records, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343, 18 U.S.C. 641, 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and 29 U.S. C. 439(c), respectively. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Chicago Social Security Administration’s Office of Inspector General.
On May 22, 2017, in Las Animas County Colorado District Court, Leo Ulibarri, former Secretary-Treasurer of Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division (BMWED) Local Lodge 204 (located in Pueblo, Colo.), was charged in a one-count information with Theft, in violation of C.R.S. 18-4-401(1)(5). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis District Office.
On May 19, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Carmen Martinez, former Treasurer of Bet Tzedek Legal Service Union Local 946E (located in Los Angeles, California), was sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to pay $19,070 in restitution and a $100 special assessment. On January 26, 2017, Martinez pled guilty to one count of embezzlement of union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On May 19, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Thomas M. Miller, former Secretary-Treasurer of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) Division 815 (located in Joliet, Ill.), pled guilty to a one-count criminal information for embezzling $10,686 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On May 12, 2017, in the Suffolk County, 10th Judicial Circuit Court, David Diaz, former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 387 (located in Northport, N.Y.), was sentenced to 280 hours of community service in lieu of 60 days in jail and three years of probation. Diaz was also ordered to pay $17,149 in restitution. On March 16, 2017, Diaz pled guilty to Petit Larceny, in violation of New York Penal Law 155.25. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office and the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Office of Inspector General.
On May 10, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, Jeni May Hughes, former office manager for Plumbers Local 155 (located in Little Rock, Ark.), pled guilty to a one-count criminal information for embezzling $428,874 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On May 9, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, Stephanie DeBoer, former office manager and bookkeeper for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 876 (located in Edmore, Mich.), was charged in a one-count indictment with embezzling approximately $307,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On May 8, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Michelle Dancy, former Residuals Estates and Trust Department Manager of the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), located in Los Angeles, Calif., was sentenced to one year of probation and was ordered to pay $183,168 in restitution and a $100 special assessment. On March 14, 2016, Dancy pled guilty to embezzlement of union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On May 8, 2017, in the United States Court for the Northern District of Iowa, Curtis Lang, former President of the United Dairy Workers of LeMars (located in LeMars, Iowa), pled guilty to one count of embezzlement, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). On March 22, 2017, Lang was indicted for one count of embezzling union funds in the amount of $45,040. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis District Office.
On May 2, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, Thomas M. Miller, former Secretary-Treasurer of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) Division 815 (located in Joliet, Ill.), was charged in an information with embezzling approximately $10,686 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On May 1, 2017, in the United States District Court of Rhode Island, Christopher Hayes, former Rhode Island Police Department Sergeant and former President of Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Lodge 8 (located in Newport, R.I.), pled guilty to an information charging him with one count of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. Hayes admitted to the court that between August 2009 and December 2014, he used an FOP debit card to pay for his own personal expenses; wrote checks payable to himself from the FOP bank account; withdrew cash from the FOP bank account for personal use; and made online payments to his personal credit card from the FOP bank account, converting approximately $71,523 in union funds for his own personal use. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Rhode Island State Police.
On April 24, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, Raymond C. Ventrone, former business manager for International Brotherhood of Boilermakers Local 154 (located in Pittsburgh, Pa.), was charged in a six-count information for one count of embezzling approximately $1,499,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and five counts of income tax evasion, in violation of 26 U.S.C. 7201. The charges follow a joint investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office, Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
On April 10, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, Jeni May Hughes, former office manager for Plumbers Local 155 (located in Little Rock, Ark.), was charged in a one-count criminal information for embezzling union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On April 7, 2017, in the United States District Court for Western District of Washington, Pascale McAtee, former President of International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART) Local 161-Transportation Division (TD), located in Everett, Wash., pled guilty to one count of embezzling over $82,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing is scheduled for July 10, 2017. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On April 5, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut, Andrew Thibodeau, former Secretary-Treasurer of International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) Local Lodge 1433 (located in Kensington, Conn.), was charged in a one-count information for embezzling union funds exceeding $70,000, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). Thibodeau then pled guilty to the charge. The charge and guilty plea follow a joint investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On April 4, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, David Sager, former President of United Steelworkers Local 5000 (located in Middleburg Heights, Ohio), was indicted on three counts of filing false income tax returns, in violation of 26 U.S.C. 7206(1). On September 14, 2016, Sager previously was charged with nine counts of embezzlement, 18 counts of mail fraud, one count of obstruction of justice, and one count of making false statement to law enforcement, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), 18 U.S.C. 1341, 18 U.S.C. 1512(c)(2), and 18 U.S.C. 1001 respectively. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland Office, Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Internal Revenue Service.
On March 29, 2017, in the United States District Court Northern District of Indiana, Fenna F. Saylors, former Treasurer of National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 378 (located in Marion, Ind.), pled guilty to one count of embezzlement, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). Saylors embezzled approximately $16,647. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On March 29, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, Scot McNamara, former Financial Secretary of Heat & Frost Insulators Local 34 (located St. Paul, Minn.), was sentenced to four months of house arrest and two years of probation. McNamara was also ordered to pay $8,871 in restitution, a $3,000 fine, a $100 special assessment, and $4,000 in reimbursement to the U.S. Treasury Department for the cost of his legal representation. On December 9, 2016, McNamara pled guilty to one count of embezzlement from a labor union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On March 29, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Abingdon Division, William Dixon, former Secretary-Treasurer of International Brotherhood of Boilermakers Local 2014 (located in Lebanon, Va.), was sentenced to two years of probation and was ordered to undergo counseling and drug treatment. Dixon was also ordered to pay the remaining restitution of $3,408. Dixon previously paid $930. On December 12, 2016, Dixon pled guilty to one count of embezzlement from a labor organization for embezzling $4,338 from the union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
On March 28, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware, Herbert White, former Financial Secretary of Steelworkers Local 4-8936 (located in Wilmington, Del.), was charged in an information with making a false entry in a union record, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On March 27, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Michael Schofield, former Secretary-Treasurer of Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way (BMW) Local 1046 (located in Plainfield, Ill.), was sentenced to eight months of incarceration, and one year of supervised release (which includes two months of home confinement). He was also ordered to pay $30,641 in restitution and a $25 fine. On January 26, 2017, Schofield pled guilty to one count of making a false entry with respect to the filing of the union’s LM-4 report for fiscal year ending March 31, 2013, in that it helped conceal an embezzlement of union funds totaling $31,850 during 2012 and 2013, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). In the plea, for the purpose of determining relevant conduct, Schofield admitted to making unauthorized loans of union funds to himself in excess of $2,000, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 503(a). In the plea, for the purpose of computing his sentence, Schofield stipulated to having committed wire fraud to defraud his employer of $30,641, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On March 27, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, Edward Padilla, former Secretary-Treasurer/Business Manager of Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 220 (located in Bakersfield, Calif.), pled guilty to one count of embezzlement of union funds totaling $168,780, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On March 27, 2017, in the Superior Court of Washington for Pierce County, Casey Cortese, former President for the Association of Civilian Technicians (ACT) Chapter 108 (located in Pierce County, Wash.), was indicted on a single count of theft in the 1st degree, in violation of RCW 9A.56.020(1)(c) and RCW 9A.56.030(1)(a). Cortese is charged with converting over $27,000 in Chapter 108 funds to his own personal use. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On March 24, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Jay C. Roy, former Secretary-Treasurer of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, Transportation Union (SMART) Local 1245-Transportation Division (TD), located in Atlanta, Ga., pled guilty to one count of embezzlement in the amount of $2,125, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and agreed to pay $101,019 in restitution. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta-Nashville District Office.
On March 23, 2017, in the United States Court for the Southern District of New Yorfk, Johnnie Miranti, former Secretary-Treasurer of Toy and Novelty Workers Local 223 (located in New York, N.Y.), was sentenced to eight months of imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $138,500 in forfeiture and a $5,000 fine. At the sentencing, the court also denied Miranti’s petition requesting a reduction from 29 U.S.C. 504 and 1111 (which prohibits persons convicted of certain crimes from holding union and/or employee benefit fund office or employment, or serving in other prohibited capacities, for a period of 13 years following conviction or the end of imprisonment). On August 8, 2016, Miranti pled guilty to Conspiracy to Solicit and Receive Kickbacks to Influence the Operation of an Employee Benefit Plan, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371. The sentencing follows a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the New York City Police Department, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
On March 22, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, Sharon Holmes, former Secretary-Treasurer of American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 807 (located in Columbia, S.C.), was sentenced to one day of imprisonment and 18 months of supervised release. Holmes was also ordered pay restitution in the amount of $101,987 and a $100 assessment. On March 15, 2016, Holmes pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds in the amount of $41,823, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta-Nashville District Office.
On March 22, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Iowa, Curtis Dean Lang, former President for the United Dairy Workers of LeMars (located in LeMars, Iowa), was indicted on one count of embezzling $45,040, in union funds in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis District Office.
On March 21, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Monique Tyson, former office secretary for Painters District Council 3 (located in Raytown, Mo.), pled guilty to one count of falsifying union records, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). Tyson falsified entries in the union’s cash receipts journal to hide her embezzlement of between $7,500 and $20,864. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Kansas City Resident Office.
On March 20, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island, Christopher Hayes, former President of Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Local Lodge 8 (located in Newport, R.I.), was charged in a one-count information with wire fraud in the amount of $71,523, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Rhode Island State Police.
On March 16, 2017, in the Suffolk County First District Court of New York, David Diaz, former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 387 (located in Northport, N.Y.), pled guilty to Petit Larceny, in violation of New York Penal Law 155.25. His sentencing is set for May 11, 2017. The plea follows an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office and the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Office of Inspector General.
On March 13, 2017, in the United States District Court Northern District of Indiana, Fenna F. Saylors, former Treasurer of National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 378 (located in Marion, Ind.), was charged in a one-count information with embezzlement of union funds in the amount of $16,647, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On March 9, 2017, the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania denied James Francis Allgeier’s petition to exempt him from the statutory disability, pursuant to 29 U.S.C. 504(a), to hold the elected position of executive board member in International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers Local 2 (located in Aliquippa, Pa.). Allgeier’s disqualification under section 504 is a result of his August 5, 2008 conviction, in the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, for aggravated assault with serious bodily injury, in violation of 18 Pa. C.S. 2702(a)(1). The denial of the petition follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On March 9, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Jay C. Roy, former Secretary-Treasurer of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, Transportation Union (SMART) Local 1245-Transportation Division (TD), located in Atlanta, Ga., was charged in a one-count information for embezzling union funds in the approximate amount of $2,125. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta-Nashville District Office.
On March 9, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Danae Romero, former Vice President of United Industrial & Service Workers of America (UISWA), located in Colton, Calif., pled guilty to one count of theft or embezzlement in connection with health care, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 669. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Employee Benefits Security Administration.
On March 8, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (White Plains), Brian W. Scott, former President/Business Manager of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 503 (located in Monroe, N.Y.), was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison followed by two years of supervised release. Scott was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $68,771. On November 17, 2016, Scott pled guilty to one count of mail fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1341. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office.
On March 3, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, Edward Padilla, former Secretary-Treasurer/Business Manager of Laborers Local 220 (located in Bakersfield, Calif.), was charged in a one-count information with embezzlement of union funds totaling $168,780, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On March 1, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, Robert Fabrizio, the owner of Three Generations, a union contractor and an employer trustee of the Painters Local 8A-28A welfare fund, was sentenced to eight months in jail and one year of supervised release. He was also ordered to make full restitution of $743,032. Fabrizio was convicted of conspiring to facilitate a kickback scheme whereby the third party administrator (TPA) of the welfare fund paid him $743,032 over a seven-year period, through a shell company he controlled, to ensure the TPA maintained his contract with the fund. Fabrizio shared these proceeds with co-conspirator Hector Lopez, former President of Painters Local 8A-28A (located in Long Island City, N.Y.), who was sentenced to four years of incarceration following his conviction in November 2014. In November 2011, Fabrizio pled guilty to one count of Kickbacks to Influence Operations of Employee Benefit Plan and two counts of Money Laundering Conspiracy. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the Employee Benefits Security Administration, and the IRS-CID.
On March 1, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Stephen Royer, former Secretary-Treasurer of Machinists Lodge 243 (located in East Prospect, Pa.), was charged in a five-count indictment, which included one count of embezzling $130,870 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and four counts of filing false reports, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(b). The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On February 28, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware, Lon Sullivan, former Treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 644 (located in Baltimore, Md.), was charged in an information with one count of wire fraud in the amount of $8,647, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. He then pled guilty to the charge. Sullivan agreed to pay restitution in the amount of $96,809. The subject union was comprised of DOL employees. The charge and guilty plea follow an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On February 27, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Gary Cooper, a contractor associated with Laborers Local 657 (located in Washington, D.C.), was sentenced to 68 months in prison, 36 months of probation, and 120 hours of community service. He was also ordered to pay $1,632,000 in restitution. On November 22, 2016, Cooper was convicted by a jury of one count of conspiracy to embezzle from a labor organization, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c) and 18 U.S.C. 371; one count of conspiracy to make unlawful labor payments, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 186 and 18 U.S.C. 371; one count of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343; and two counts of money laundering, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1957, for stealing $1.7 million from the union. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office, the FBI, and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On February 24, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Juan Carlos Recinos, former business manager for Iron Workers Local 201 (located in Washington, D.C.), pled guilty to one count of Fraud in the Second Degree, in violation of DC Code Section 22-3221(b) and Section 22-3222(b)(2), on the condition that he repay the seven union members he stole from prior to sentencing. Recinos pled guilty to stealing $26,900 from the seven union members when he told them that they had to pay him cash from their back pay awards to pay an attorney that helped obtain the back pay, when there was no attorney involved. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On February 23, 2017, in the Dakota County (Minnesota) District Court, William Winecke, former Treasurer of the Soo Line Locomotive and Car Foremen’s Association (located in Apple Valley, Minn.), pled guilty to one count of theft by swindle of more than $35,000, in violation of Minnesota State Statute 609.52.2(4). On the same date, Winecke was sentenced to 30 days of confinement and four years of probation, and he was also ordered to pay $12,536 in restitution and $504 in fees. Winecke previously made restitution in the amount of $29,000. The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On February 22, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Western Division, Aaron Contreras, former Secretary-Treasurer of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 84749 (located in Fostoria, Ohio), was sentenced to 16 months of incarceration, three years of supervised release, and he was ordered to make full restitution of $42,700. On October 11, 2016, Contreras pled guilty to one count of embezzlement in the amount of $42,700. The sentencing follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office and the Fostoria, Ohio Police Department.
On February 17, 2017, in the Ashtabula, Ohio Court of Common Pleas, Adele Dewey, former Secretary-Treasurer of Steelworkers Local 811 (located in Andover, Ohio), pled guilty to one count of theft in the amount of $4,224, in violation of O.R.C. 2913.02, and one count of forgery, in violation of O.R.C. 2913.31. She was immediately sentenced to 30 days of incarceration (suspended) and one year of supervised release. Dewey was ordered to pay a $250 fine for each charge and to perform 40 hours of community service. Dewey already paid full restitution. The plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office.
On February 16, 2017,in Waupaca County, Wisconsin Circuit Court, Teresa Adkins, former business manager of Heat & Frost Insulators Local 127 (located in Clintonville, Wis.), was charged in 10-count criminal complaint with one count of felony theft of more than $10,000 and nine counts of felony forgery, in violation of Wisconsin State Statute 943.20(1)(b) and 943.38(1)(a), respectively. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On February 15, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Devon Madray, former President of Security, Police and Fire Professionals of America (SPFPA) Local 119 (located in Roseville, Mich.), was sentenced to five years of probation and was also ordered to pay $20,097 in restitution and a $100 special assessment. On October 24, 2016, Madray pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds in the same amount, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office.
On February 14, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, Clementine T. Ray , former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 2109 (located in Temple, Tex.), was charged in a one-count indictment of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On February 8, 2017, in the Franklin County, Ohio Court of Common Pleas, Michael Mathis, former Secretary-Treasurer of Locomotive Engineers Division 34 (located in Columbus, Ohio), was charged with one count of theft in the amount of $5,784, in violation of Ohio Revised Code 2913.02. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati-Cleveland District Office.
On February 8, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Christopher Kwegan, a contractor associated with Laborers Local 657 (located in Washington, D.C.), was sentenced to three years in prison, three years of probation, and 120 hours of community service. He was also ordered to pay $1,632,000 in restitution. On November 1, 2016, Kwegan pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit embezzlement from a labor organization, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c) and 18 U.S.C. 371; one count of conspiracy to accept unlawful labor payments, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 186(b) and 18 U.S.C. 371; one count of conspiracy to commit wire and honest services fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1341, 18 U.S.C. 1346, and 18 U.S.C. 371; and 39 counts of money laundering, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1957. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office, the FBI, and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On February 7, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Anthony Frederick, former business manager for Laborers Local 657 (located in Washington, D.C.), was sentenced to four years in prison, three years of probation, and 120 hours of community service. Frederick was also ordered to pay $1,632,000 in restitution. On October 31, 2016, Frederick pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to embezzle money from a labor organization, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c) and 18 U.S.C. 371; one count of conspiracy to receive unlawful labor payments in violation of 29 U.S.C. 186 and 18 U.S.C. 371; one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343 and 18 U.S.C. 371; and one count of money laundering, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1957. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office, the FBI, and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On February 7, 2017, in the United States District Court District of Wyoming, Harold Giberson, former President of Utility Workers Local 127 (located in Casper, Wyo.), was sentenced to six months of home confinement and five years of probation. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $158,953 and a $100 special assessment. On December 2, 2016, Giberson pled guilty to embezzlement in the amount of $179,052, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis District Office.
On February 6, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Wanda Rosenboro-Correa, former Secretary-Treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 2798 (located in Washington, D.C.), was sentenced to five years of probation and was ordered to pay restitution of $13,803. On November 22, 2016, Rosenboro-Correa pled guilty to one count of theft within a special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 661. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
On February 2, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Norfolk Division, Robert Smith III, former Business Agent and Financial Secretary of International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) Local 970 (located in Norfolk, Va.), was sentenced to 41 months in prison followed by three years of probation. Smith was also ordered to pay $1,072,669 in restitution. On October 14, 2016, Smith pled guilty to one count of mail fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1341, for stealing $1,072,669 from the union by making cash withdrawals from the union’s bank account, paying his personal credit card bills, and using union funds to buy gas, food, clothing, shoes, toys, entertainment, and home improvement supplies. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the FBI.
On February 1, 2017, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Court of Common Pleas, County of Clarion, Mark Bell, former Secretary-Treasurer of International Association of Machinists Lodge 2439 (located in Knox, Pa.), was sentenced to 18 months of probation. He was also ordered to pay the cost of prosecution and the cost of supervision fee of $35 per month and to complete 50 hours of community service. Bell previously paid $872 in restitution. On January 4, 2017, Bell pled guilty to one count of forgery, in violation of 18 Pa. C.S. 4101(a)(1). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On January 31, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Southern Division, Michael Lackey, former President of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 3901 (located in Oxford, Ala.), pled guilty to five counts of bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1344, and one count of embezzlement in the amount of $69,193, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta-Nashville District Office.
On January 30, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, Keith Christopherson, former business manager for Heat & Frost Insulators and Allied Workers (HFIA) Local 34 (located in St. Paul, Minn.), was sentenced to four months of incarceration followed by two years of supervised release. Christopherson was also ordered to pay $67,714 in restitution and a $100 special assessment. On August 19, 2016, Christopherson pled guilty to one count of embezzlement of union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On January 26, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Michael Schofield, former Secretary-Treasurer of Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way (BMW) Local 1046 (located in Plainfield, Ill.), entered into an amended plea, thereby dismissing the June 30, 2016 guilty plea. In the amended plea, Schofield pled guilty to the same one-count charge of making a false entry with respect to the filing of the union’s LM-4 report for fiscal year ending March 31, 2013 in that it helped conceal an embezzlement of union funds totaling $31,850 during 2012 and 2013. In the amended plea, for the purpose of determining relevant conduct pursuant to Guideline 1B1.3, Schofield admitted to making unauthorized loans of union funds to himself in excess of $2,000, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 503(a). In the amended plea, for the purpose of computing his sentence under Guideline 1B1.2, Schofield stipulated to having committed wire fraud to defraud his employer (Union Pacific) of $30,641, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. As a result of violating the terms of his pretrial release (stipulated wire fraud offense), Schofield was incarcerated pending his March 21, 2017 scheduled sentencing date. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On January 26, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Carmen Martinez, former Treasurer of Bet Tzedek Legal Service Union Local 946E (located in Los Angeles, Calif.) pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds in the amount of $19,070, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The guilty plea follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On January 25, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Angela Parrish-Wilson, former office manager of the Mid-South Retail Wholesale and Department Store Union, District Council 932 (located in Birmingham, Ala.), was charged with one count of embezzling $41,450 in union funds from District Council 932 as well as Locals 201 and 555, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and 20 counts of defrauding a FDIC insured financial institution of over $40,000, in violation of 18 U.S.C 1344(2). The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Tampa Resident Investigator Office of the Atlanta-Nashville District Office.
On January 25, 2017, in the Suffolk County First District Court of New York, David Diaz, former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 387 (located in Northport, N.Y.), was charged in a felony complaint with Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, a Class D Felony, for a larceny exceeding $3,000, in violation of New York State Penal Law 155.35. Diaz was then arrested and surrendered to the Suffolk County Attorney General's Office. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office and the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Office of Inspector General.
On January 25, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of Idaho, Ashley Cline, former office manager for Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 155 (located in Idaho Falls, Idaho), was indicted and pled guilty to one count of embezzling over $37,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing is scheduled for April 20, 2017. The charge and guilty plea follow an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco - Seattle District Office.
On January 25, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, John Kauffman, Jr., former President of National Federation of Government Employees (NFFE) Lodge 1442 (located at Chambersburg, Pa.), was sentenced to one month of imprisonment followed by seven months of home confinement. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $22,062. On September 26, 2016, Kauffman pled guilty to mail fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1341. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On January 24, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Louis Smith, former President of Teamsters Local 810 (located in Long Island City, N.Y.), was sentenced to one year in prison followed by two years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $151,481 in forfeiture. Smith had already paid $213,264 in restitution to the local's health and welfare fund. On August 5, 2016, Smith pled guilty to conspiracy to solicit and receive kickbacks in an employee benefit plan, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371 and 1954. The sentencing follows a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the NYPD, the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General, and the FBI.
On January 23, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Michelle Clifton, former office manager for Insulators Local 78 (located in Birmingham, Ala.), was sentenced to three months of imprisonment, three months of home detention, and three years of supervised release. She was also ordered to pay $23,014 in restitution. On August 30, 2016, Clifton pled guilty to one count of embezzlement in the amount of $23,014, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta-Nashville District Office.
On January 19, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Monique Tyson, former office secretary for Painters District Council 3 (located in Raytown, Mo.), was charged in an information with one count of falsifying union records, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). Tyson falsified entries in the union’s cash receipts journal to hide her embezzlement of between $7,500 and $20,864. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Kansas City Resident Investigator Office.
On January 18, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington, Charles Nelson, former Secretary-Treasurer of the National Council of Security Police (NCSP), formally located in Yakima, Wash., was sentenced to six months in a federal penitentiary and three years of federal probation. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $143,489 and a $100 fine. On September 7, 2016, Nelson pled guilty to one count of embezzling over $140,000 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office.
On January 17, 2017, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, John J. Romero, former Treasurer of United Industrial & Service Workers of America (UISWA), located in Colton, Calif., pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit theft or embezzlement in connection with healthcare, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 669. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Employee Benefits Security Administration.
On January 12, 2017, in the 10th Judicial Circuit in Jefferson County, Alabama, John Clifton, former unit griever for Steelworkers Local 09-1013-S (located in Fairfield, Ala.), pled guilty to theft of property, in violation of 13A-008-005. He was then sentenced to one year in the Jefferson County Jail (suspended) and placed on unsupervised probation for two years. Clifton was also ordered to pay $8,000 in restitution. The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta-Nashville District Office.
On January 12, 2017, in the Western District of Oklahoma, Kathleen Smith, former Financial Secretary-Treasurer of Machinists Lodge 850 and the Oklahoma State Council of Machinists (located in Oklahoma City, Okla.), was charged and pled guilty to one count of embezzling $18,658 in union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C 501(c). The charge and plea follow an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On January 9, 2017, in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Sergio Acosta, President/Employee of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 2326 and Lawrence Ackerman, a health insurance broker, were each charged with one count of conspiring to defraud Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of $5.5 million and one count of conspiring to defraud the Local 2326 self-insured plan of $1 million, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1347 and 1349, respectively. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, and the Office of Employee Benefits Security Administration.
On January 5, 2017, in the United States Court for the Southern District of New York, Adrian Lindsay, former Vice President of the Benefit Fund Staff Association (located in New York, N.Y.), was sentenced to two years of probation. Lindsay was also ordered to pay $12,000 in restitution and a $25 special assessment. On July 21, 2016, Lindsay pled guilty to willful concealment and withholding of records, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c), showing use of association funds for approximately $25,000 in combined expenditures, with former President Malkia King, that were not authorized by the union. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office.
On January 4, 2017, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Court of Common Pleas, County of Clarion, Mark Bell, former Secretary-Treasurer of International Association of Machinists Lodge 2439 (located in Knox, Pa.), pled guilty to one count of forgery, in violation of 18 Pa. C.S. 4101(a)(1). The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
Last Updated: 9-15-22