Former Ohio Labor Union Official Sentenced to Year in Prison after Pleading Guilty to Embezzling from Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers, Local 84

YOUNGSTOWN, OH – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) and Office of Inspector General, U.S. District Court Judge Benita Y. Pearson of the Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division in Youngstown, Ohio, has sentenced former union official Terry Doan to one year in prison, followed by three years of probation. The court also ordered him to pay $195,446 in restitution to the Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee of the Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers, Local 84 in Kent, Ohio.

The Deerfield, Ohio, resident pleaded guilty in February 2019, to one felony count of embezzlement from an employee benefit plan.

Investigators found Doan, who served as financial secretary/treasurer of the Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee of the Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers, Local 84's training fund, embezzled $195,148 between 2012 and 2017. Checks over a certain amount required the signature of two trustees, but Doan had that requirement removed in 2012, the indictment states. Doan was one of six trustees of the employee benefit plan.

"Criminal acts like this directly impact participants in employee benefit plans by compromising their hard-earning benefits and eroding confidence in those chosen to manage their trust," said Employee Benefits Security Administration Regional Director Joe Rivers, in Cincinnati, Ohio. "The U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration is committed to ensuring the integrity of employee benefit programs."

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Bennett prosecuted the case.

Employers and workers can reach EBSA toll-free at 866-444-3272 for help with problems related to private sector retirement and health plans. Additional information can be found at http://www.dol.gov/ebsa.