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 20, 2002, in Martin County (Indiana) Circuit Court, Joetta A. Axe, secretary-treasurer of AFGE Local 1415, pled guilty to one count of theft of union funds. Axe was sentenced to serve 365 days in county security with 363 days suspended, pay fines and court costs of $137, probation fees of $160, and restitution of $10,232.62. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On December 18, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, a plea agreement was filed in which Robert "Blackie" Emery, Sr., former secretary-treasurer for Electrical Workers, IBEW Local 429, pled guilty to one count of embezzling approximately $5,200 from Local 429 and one count of failure to file a required officer report, Form LM-30. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On December 16, 2002, in Martin County (Indiana) Circuit Court, Joetta A. Axe, secretary-treasurer of AFGE Local 1415, was charged in a one-count information with the theft of $10,232.62 in union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On December 12, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Cheryl Rowe, former secretary of Laborers Local 80, pled guilty to one count of embezzling $93,430 in union funds. She had been indicted on March 15, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On December 12, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, Sullivan Hamlet, former president of UNITE Local 2603 in Greensboro, was sentenced to one year of supervised release. Hamlet previously made $4,567 in restitution and pled guilty to embezzling union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On December 12, 2002 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, Cathy R. Josselyn, former bookkeeper for Teamsters Local 853, was sentenced to one year of probation, fined $25, and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service. Josselyn pled guilty on September 9, 2002, to making false entries in union financial records following a joint investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On December 12, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of South Dakota, Jo Ann Vaughn, former treasurer of Stage and Picture Operators Local 220, pled guilty to one count of embezzling approximately $33,000 (not exceeding $29,000 in union funds). Vaughn was indicted on October 22, 2002, on one count of embezzlement and one count of fraud for causing a false report to be made. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On December 11, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, embezzlement and conspiracy charges were dismissed against LeRoy Worley, former general secretary of the Iron Workers. Federal prosecutors decided not to seek a new trial after a jury's failure to reach a verdict caused a mistrial to be declared on November 15, 2002. Worley and former Iron Workers President Jake West were the subjects of a superceding indictment handed down by a federal grand jury on August 7, 2002, that accused both men of funneling illegal payments to Worley, totaling more than $217,000, from the union pension plan for salary and expenses after Worley retired. The indictment also listed more than $37,000 for a pension that Worley was not entitled to receive. West pled guilty on October 25, 2002, to one count of embezzling from an employee pension benefit fund and one count of making a material false statement in exchange for the remaining charges against him being dropped after sentencing. The charges had been brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office, the FBI, and the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration.
On December 11, 2002, in Blue Earth (Minnesota) District Court, Adam Wobbrock, former treasurer of Graphic Communications International Union Local 379-C, pled guilty to one count of theft related to an embezzlement of $3,675.36 of union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On December 11, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Robert E. Martin, Jr., a former member of Steelworkers Local 9336, pled guilty to one count of harboring a fugitive, Elizabeth J. George, who was previously indicted for embezzlement. As part of the plea agreement, Martin agreed to pay Local 9336 $900.71 in restitution. Martin was released on bond after being incarcerated since September 9, 2002 on the harboring charge. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On December 10, 2002, in Kern County, California Superior Court, a 5-count criminal complaint was filed charging Mark D. Marquez, president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 2730 (which represents U.S. Border Patrol Agents), with embezzling $1,297.14 in union funds. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On December 9, 2002, in Winona County (Minnesota) District Court, Jeffrey J. Schueler, former trustee of Glass, Molders, Pottery Plastics & Allied Workers Local 63B, and former chairman of the Badger Foundry unit of Local 63B, was sentenced to 96 hours of community service, fined $300, ordered to make restitution totaling $9,422.82 to Local 63B and other parties, and placed on 10 years probation. Schueler pled guilty on October 28, 2002, to one count of check forgery in excess of $2,500 after being charged on June 14, 2002, with two counts of check forgery and one count of theft in relation to the embezzlement of $7,743 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On December 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, Donald Stevens, former secretary-treasurer of Sheet Metal Workers Local 93 in St. Louis, pled guilty to falsifying union records. The charge was brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis Distinct Office.
On December 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Hugh Credle, former president of Postal Workers Local 1616 in Roanoke Rapids, was sentenced to six months of home confinement followed by three years of supervised release. Credle was also ordered to make restitution in the amount of $6,734 and pay a $5,000 fine. Credle previously made $1,700 in restitution. On August 19, 2002, Credle pled guilty to embezzling union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On December 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, Deborah S. Bailey, former office manager of American Federation of Musicians Local 136, was sentenced to five-years probation, ordered to pay a special assessment of $100, and ordered to pay full restitution in the amount of $15,601.80 (jointly with former Local 136 President and Business Manager Thomas C. Bailey). Deborah Bailey pled guilty to embezzlement on September 6, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office.
On December 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, Thomas C. Bailey, former president and business manager of American Federation of Musicians Local 136, was sentenced to 15-months imprisonment for embezzlement and 12-months imprisonment for falsifying the union's annual financial report (the sentences to run concurrently) and three-years supervised release for embezzlement to run concurrently with one-year supervised release for falsifying the union's annual financial report. Thomas Bailey was ordered to pay full restitution of $15,601.80 (jointly with Deborah S. Bailey), a $4,000 fine, and a $125 special assessment. Bailey was found guilty by a jury on September 11, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office.
On December 4, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, James Hubler, former financial secretary of Steelworkers Local 14375, was charged in an information with embezzling approximately $27,000 in union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia District Office.
On December 3, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, Gregory Carpenter, former president of Sheet Metal Workers Local 93 in St. Louis, was sentenced to two years of supervised release. Carpenter pled guilty to falsifying union records to conceal the misappropriation of $9,123 in union funds on September 17, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
On December 2, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Barbara A. Ryan, former financial secretary of PACE Local 5-626, was sentenced to fifteen months in prison followed by two years of supervised probation. Ryan pled guilty on August 5, 2002, to embezzling $117,734.18 from her union and entering into a scheme to defraud her employer, BP Chemicals, of $33,578.59 for work she did not perform. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office and the FBI.
On November 27, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, Jerome J. Dube, former financial secretary of Carpenters Local 1865, pled guilty to one count of embezzling $310.46 in union funds and admitted a total embezzlement of union funds in the approximate amount of $14,176. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On November 26, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, a plea agreement was filed in which Laura L. McClurg, former secretary-treasurer of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1195, agreed to plead guilty to one count of concealing union records after a $2,295 shortage of union funds was uncovered. An information was filed on September 3, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia District Office.
On November 25, 2002 in Marion County (Indiana) Superior Court, James Johnson, former president of Auto Workers Local 36, was sentenced to 365 days in jail with 363 days suspended, and ordered to pay $132 in court costs and $1,000 in fines after pleading guilty to theft and making restitution of $4,167.76. He had pled guilty on November 25, 2002 after being charged on April 17, 2002 in an information filed following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On November 25, 2002, in Marion County (Indiana) Superior Court, James M. Johnson, former president of Auto Workers Local 361, pled guilty to one count of theft of union funds. An information was filed on April 17, 2002, charging Johnson with one count of theft of $4,167.76 following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On November 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for Puerto Rico, Abdiel Navarro, former administrator, Union General de Trabajadores, Local 1199, SEIU, was sentenced to six months home confinement with electronic monitoring followed by two years probation. Navarro was ordered to make restitution of $33,851.58 and pay a fine of $800. Navarro pled guilty to embezzling union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On November 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, Thomas Martin, former business manager of Plumbers Local 15, pled guilty to one count of embezzling approximately $3,175 from Local 15 by using Local 15 funds to pay for plumbing work for an unnamed public official and one count of mail fraud in connection with the mailing of a Local 15 check to a contractor to pay for $2,700 in free plumbing work performed at a property owned by former Minneapolis City Councilman Joseph Biernat. Martin was named in an indictment on April 17, 2002, a superceding indictment on May 21, 2002, and a superceding indictment on October 16, 2002. Councilman Biernat was convicted of embezzlement, mail fraud, and making a false statement on November 21, 2002. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office and the FBI.
On November 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Chris Keith, former office manager of the Building and Construction Trades Council in Chattanooga, was charged in a one-count information with embezzling $28,092 in union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On November 22, 2002, in the Hamilton County (Ohio) Court of Common Pleas, Dave Mitchell, former treasurer of Carpenters Local 415, was indicted on one count of misdemeanor theft without consent. The charge was brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On November 22, 2002, Edward Carroll, a prominent figure in construction development in New York City and the vice president of 2 BW Development, was sentenced in United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York for obstruction of justice. The charges were filed in connection with Carroll's appearance before a federal grand jury on December 11, 2001 and January 8, 2002, at which time he provided false information to the grand jury. Carroll was sentenced to five months in jail, five months home detention, and ordered to pay a $150.00 fine. Carroll also lost his architecture license as a result of the conviction. The investigation is in connection with the $10 million fraud case arising out of the renovation of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's new headquarters. Individuals affiliated with Elevator Constructors Local One and Operating Engineers Local 14 were part of the indictment filed on April 16, 2002. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office and the FBI.
On November 22, 2002, in the Imperial County Superior Court in El Centro, California, a criminal complaint was filed charging Edward Adams, former president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 2554, with one count of Felony Grand Theft of $6,540 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On November 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern Division of Ohio, Martin J. Mone, former financial secretary of Auto Workers Local 1052 in Cleveland, Ohio, was sentenced to four years probation and ordered to pay full restitution in the amount of $6,264.97. Mone pled guilty to one count of embezzlement on September 13, 2002 following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On November 21, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, Joseph Biernat, Minneapolis city councilman, was found guilty on one count of aiding and abetting an embezzlement of $2,700 in the union funds of Plumbers Local 15, three counts of mail fraud, and one count of making a false statement. Biernat was acquitted on one count of extortion under color of official right and one count of conspiracy to extort under color of official right. Superceding indictments were brought against Biernat and Thomas Martin, former business manager of Plumbers Local 15, on May 21, 2002 and October 16, 2002. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office and the FBI.
On November 20, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Joyce Griffin, former secretary of the New Orleans Metal Trades Department, was sentenced to three years probation and ordered to pay restitution of $2,383. Griffin pled guilty to one count of embezzlement on August 14, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On November 20, 2002, in United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, Joleen Coughlon, former secretary, and Clyde Starkey, former member, were indicted for their roles in a conspiracy to embezzle the funds of Laborers Local 177 in Des Moines, Iowa. The indictment details separate activities whereby the two participated in embezzlement schemes with the previously indicted local president, Fred Risius. Starkey is charged with receiving and cashing $28,905 in union checks to which he had no legitimate claim and returning a portion of the proceeds to Risius. The indictment alleges that Coughlon accepted gifts paid for by the union by issuing fictitious payee checks to Risius from the local strike fund. Coughlon is also charged with the unauthorized receipt of strike fund checks and the falsification of related records. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
On November 19, 2002, in the United States Court for the Western District of Texas, Pedro Ojeda, former secretary-treasurer of Musicians Local 23 in San Antonio, was sentenced to five years probation including six months home confinement and 100 hours of community service. Ojeda was also ordered to pay remaining restitution in the amount of $250. Ojeda pled guilty to one count of embezzlement on September 19, 2002 following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On November 19, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, Steven Pautz, former president of Machinists Lodge 251, pled guilty to one count of embezzling $450 in union funds. Pautz had been indicted August 6, 2002 on two counts of embezzling $1,450 in union funds and two counts of making false entries in union records. The indictment also noted that he had embezzled a total of $12,257.75 in Lodge 251 funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On November 18, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon, Dennis Talbot, former secretary-treasurer of Sheet Metal Workers Local 33 in Cleveland, Ohio, pled guilty to an information charging him with accepting and soliciting gratuities in return for using his influence as a pension fund trustee. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office, the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General and Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration, the IRS, and the FBI.
On November 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, Richard Smith, former president of Electrical Workers IUE Local 770 was sentenced to three years probation and ordered to pay a fine of $2,500. Smith pled guilty to one count of failing to maintain union records on August 22, 2002 following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On November 15, 2002, in the Circuit Court of Macon County, Illinois, Deborah Woltz, former building manager of the Allied Industrial Workers Building Association of Decatur, Illinois, was sentenced to 48 months probation and ordered to pay full restitution of $19,195.94 to the Building Association plus court costs after pleading guilty to embezzlement. The case was prosecuted by the Macon County State's Attorney following an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On November 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, Mary Anderson, former treasurer of Communications Workers Local 9417, was sentenced to prison for twelve months and a day, plus twelve months of probation, and was ordered to make restitution of $89,422.58. On July 19, 2002, Anderson pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds. The charge was brought following an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office.
On November 14, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, John L. Dorrier Jr., former business agent of Operating Engineers Local 66, pled guilty to three counts of a 10-count indictment charging him with embezzlement of union funds, forgery, and interference with the administration of Internal Revenue laws. Dorrier falsified 976 picket expense vouchers by completing them in the names of union members and others who had not done any picketing and approximately 104 fictitious picketers. Dorrier routinely obtained checks from the union and forged payee signature endorsements before depositing or cashing the checks into his personal bank account. Annually the checks to each fictitious picketer purposely totaled less than $600, a threshold amount that would have triggered the required filing of IRS Form 1099. Dorrier has agreed to make restitution to the union in the amount of $56,195.00 and to take responsibility for a tax loss to the Internal Revenue Service in an amount between $23,500.00 and $40,000.00. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of the Treasury Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division.
On November 13, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, Gwendolyn Meadows, former office secretary and bookkeeper for Post Office Mail Handlers Local 334, was sentenced to eight months imprisonment plus 24 months of supervised probation, and was ordered to make restitution of $27,882.16. Meadows pled guilty to embezzlement after being indicted on March 20, 2002. The charge was brought following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On November 13, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, Norval Craig Michael, a member of Laborers Local 177, entered a guilty plea to an information charging him with conspiracy to embezzle. As detailed in the information, Michael joined with Business Manager Fred Risius and Vice-President Henry Jannenga in an embezzlement scheme wherein $16,900 in union checks payable to him were cashed and the proceeds split among the parties. These charges are the result of an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office. Risius and Jannegna were charged and entered guilty pleas in related investigations on July 26, 2002.
On November 8, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Jeffrey L. Williams, former treasurer of AFSCME Local 11, was charged in an information with embezzling $3,312.65 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On November 8, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, Michael E. Koehler, former business manager of Local 965 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), pled guilty to embezzling $135,197.75 in union funds. Koehler submitted false claims for the reimbursement of monies he claimed he had given to union members' families at funerals, for mileage and meal expenses that were never incurred, and for overtime he never worked. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On November 6, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, James Clem, former business manager of Painters Local 80, was sentenced to four months of home confinement, three years of supervised release, and ordered to make full restitution of $15,977. On August 21, 2002, Clem pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On November 6, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, David Allen Shaffer, former president of Steelworkers Local 07-8985-S, pled guilty to falsifying union records in order to conceal the embezzlement of $21,958 in union funds. The charge was brought following an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office. [Related documents: HTML | PDF]
On November 6, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Tony Evans, former secretary-treasurer of Stage and Picture Operators Local 197, pled guilty to a one-count bill of information and was sentenced to six months of home confinement followed by two years of supervised probation and fined $1,000. The information charged Evans with embezzling $16,319 in union funds that he repaid prior to being sentenced. The charge was brought following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On November 4, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Lorri Delaney, former bookkeeper of Sheetmetal Workers Local 78, was sentenced to one year probation (with the first four months to be served in home confinement) and ordered to make restitution of $19,500. On July 15, 2002, Delaney pled guilty to embezzling union funds following a joint investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On November 4, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, Loyd Manning, former treasurer of Mail Handlers Local 325, was sentenced to three years probation and fined $500 after pleading guilty to a one-count indictment charging him with filing a false report. The charge was brought following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On November 1, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Jerry Seay, former president of PACE Local 3-501, was indicted on one count of embezzling $6,949 in union funds. In a separate indictment also returned on November 1, 2002, Mr. Seay's wife, Peggy Seay, was charged with 18 counts of making, uttering and possessing a forged security belonging to PACE Local 3-501 and four counts of falsification of union records. Mrs. Seay used the forged securities (i.e., union checks) to convert $1,348 in union funds to her own use. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On October 31, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii, Roberta Cabral, a former Unity House consultant, was sentenced to ten months imprisonment and three years of probation. She was also ordered to make restitution of $25,000 to Unity House and to perform 2,500 hours of community service. Unity House is a non-profit organization established to benefit members of Hotel and Restaurant Employees Local 5 and Hawaii Teamsters locals. She had plead guilty on June 17, 2002, to tax evasion for 1992 and 1993, failing to file a federal income tax return for 1994, and wire fraud. The charges had been brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Honolulu Resident Investigator Office and other federal law enforcement agencies.
On October 29, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, Geoffrey R. Barron, former business manager/financial secretary-treasurer of Carpenters Local 2471, pled guilty to the embezzlement of $29,855.26 in union funds. He was indicted for the embezzlement of union funds on September 17, 2002 following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On October 29, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, Martha Davidson, the wife of Clyde Davidson, former secretary-treasurer of Boilermakers Lodge 31, was indicted. The 24-count indictment charges Mrs. Davidson with 12 counts of embezzling union funds and 12 counts of making, uttering and possessing a forged security belonging to Boilermakers Lodge 31. The combined 24 counts charge Mrs. Davidson with misappropriating $13,917.74 in union funds. Mrs. Davidson gained access to the lodge funds while performing bookkeeping duties for her husband. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On October 28, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Edward Ramsey, former president of Steelworkers Local 9336, was sentenced to four years probation and six months home detention. He was ordered to make full restitution in the amount of $5,065.76. He had pled guilty on July 12, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General, Roanoke Office.
On October 28, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, George Wright, Jr., former financial secretary of Auto Workers Local 267, was sentenced to six months house arrest and five years probation. He was ordered to make full restitution in the amount of $19,206. He had been indicted for embezzlement of union funds on October 30, 2001, following an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office.
On October 28, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Dwight West III, a former organizer for Painters District Council 78, was sentenced to one year plus one day imprisonment followed by three years of supervised probation. He was ordered to make restitution of $2,106.76, which represents the unpaid balance of the funds embezzled. He had pled guilty on July 31, 2002, to a one-count information charging him with embezzling $30,343.86. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On October 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Dana Moore, former office manager of the Carpenters Great Lakes Regional Industrial Council, was charged in a criminal complaint with embezzling approximately $20,000 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
On October 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, William E. Fricker, former president of Steelworkers Local 9336, was sentenced to four years probation and six months home detention. He was ordered to make full restitution in the amount of $6,372.29. He had pled guilty on July 12, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General, Roanoke Office.
On October 24, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of New York, David S. Koch, former treasurer of PACE Local 236, pled guilty to one count of violating 29 U.S.C. 439(a). He admitted that he failed to file the union's annual financial reports for the fiscal years ending April 30, 2000 and April 30, 2001. He made a $4,000 restitution payment to the union prior to the plea being entered. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office.
On October 24, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, an information was filed charging Michael E. Koehler, former business manager of Electrical Workers, IBEW, Local 965, with embezzling union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On October 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Patricia Smith, former office secretary of the Laborers District Council of Alabama, was sentenced to six months home confinement followed by five years of supervised probation. She was ordered to pay $17,454.66 in restitution (prior to sentencing she had made restitution totaling $4,232.34). On July 10, 2002, Smith pled guilty to one count of embezzling $21,687 in union funds and one count of falsification of union records following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On October 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for South Dakota, Jo Ann Vaughn, former treasurer of Stage and Picture Operators Local 220, was indicted on one count of causing a false report in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1001 and one count of embezzling approximately $33,000 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On October 18, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, James R. Dawson, Sr., former president of Mail Handlers Local 325, was sentenced to three years supervised probation and fined $1,700 (he had previously made full restitution to the local). On August 7, 2002, Mr. Dawson had pled guilty to one count of embezzlement of union funds in the amount of $9,400.99. The charge was brought following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On October 18, 2002, in the Hamilton County (Ohio) Court of Common Pleas, Michelle Back, former office secretary of Local 12 of the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union, was indicted on one count of theft of union funds and one count of tampering with records. These charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On October 18, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Verlia Jones, former secretary-treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), New York/New Jersey Veterans Administration Council, and former president of AFGE Local 1012, was arrested and arraigned for the embezzlement of $44,988.84 from both labor organizations. A review of the VA Council's financial books and records, including credit union statements, copies of canceled checks, and receipt records revealed that Jones used union funds for her own use by negotiating union checks to herself and authorizing union checks to third parties on her behalf. In addition she negotiated for her personal use per-capita tax checks intended for the VA Council. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office.
On October 18, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, former Vice-President Rhonda L. Creed and former Financial-Secretary Joseph W. Burress of Steelworkers Local 8-9336 were both sentenced to three years probation. Ms. Creed was ordered to make full restitution in the amount of $3,122.64. Mr. Burress was ordered to make full restitution in the amount of $3,100.10 and was sentenced to six months home confinement with electronic monitoring. On July 11, 2002, Mr. Burress pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to embezzle union funds and to make false entry in union books and two counts of embezzlement of union funds. On July 12, 2002, Ms. Creed pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to embezzle union funds. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General, Roanoke Office.
On October 18, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, John Mylek II, former treasurer of Plasterers & Cement Masons Local 886, pled guilty to an information charging him with embezzling $7,551.28 in union funds and $675 in employee benefit funds. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office, the FBI, and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On October 16, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, a second superceding indictment was returned against Thomas Martin, former business manager of Plumbers Local 15, and Joseph Biernat, Minneapolis city councilman. The latest superceding indictment contained the same thirteen counts against Mr. Martin and seven counts against Mr. Biernat included in the May 21, 2002 superceding indictment. It added one additional count of mail fraud against both Mr. Martin and Mr. Biernat involving an individual tax return mailed to the Internal Revenue Service. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office and the FBI.
On October 16, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, Nancy Barber, former office secretary for Ironworkers Local Union #12, was sentenced to five months of imprisonment followed by five months of home confinement and three years probation. She was ordered to make full restitution in the amount of $57,601. On June 24, 2002, Ms. Barber pled guilty to one count of embezzling $57,769.74 in union funds following a joint investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office, the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration, and the FBI.
On October 15, 2002, in the United States Court for the District of New Mexico, David Rux, former business representative of Machinists Lodge 2-W in Aberdeen, Washington, was sentenced to three years probation (including six months home confinement with electronic monitoring) and 100 hours of community service. He was also ordered to pay a fine of $1,075. Rux pled guilty to seven counts of embezzlement and fifteen counts of falsifying union records on July 12, 2002 following an investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office.
On October 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Richard C. Holton, president of an insurance agency, Holton & Associates, Ltd., pled guilty to an information charging him with three counts of bribery via employer payments to a labor union official. Holton and others initiated a self-insurance program known as the Ironworking Contractors Insurance Program (ICIP). ICIP was an effort by the employers to self-insure or reinsure their worker's compensation liability as well as other business risks. In connection with that effort Holton paid former Ironworkers officers Jake West, LeRoy Worley, and Stephen Cooper to solicit union employers to join ICIP. When West threatened that he and the union would withdraw their support for ICIP unless they received additional payments, Holton, with the approval of some of the employers, agreed to pay West, Worley, and Cooper $10,000 each per year for their continued support. Throughout 1996, 1997, 1998 and part of 1999, monthly checks were issued to West, Worley, and Cooper. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office and the FBI.
On October 11, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, Anthony Brock, former treasurer of Steelworkers Local Union #4-6989, was sentenced to three years probation and ordered to pay $12,573.40 in restitution after pleading guilty to one count of embezzlement on May 29, 2002. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office.
On October 10, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Barbara Monfre, administrator of the Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 3, Elevator Division Retirement Plan, was sentenced to 24 months imprisonment and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $314,547.49. She had been arraigned on March 22, 2002, on charges of embezzling approximately $289,000 in benefit plan funds following a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office and the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration.
On October 10, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Edward K. Wiebeck, Sr., former business manager of Laborers Local 503, was sentenced to confinement in a community corrections center for six months followed by six months home confinement with electronic monitoring followed by three years of supervised release. He was ordered to pay $32,790.82 in restitution. On May 9, 2002, Wiebeck pled guilty to one count of embezzling $32,790.82 in union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
On October 10, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, Kim M. Connor, former financial secretary of United Auto Workers Local 469, pled guilty to an information filed on September 17, 2002 that charged her with one count of embezzling $3,365 in union funds and one count of filing a false LM-2 report. The information also noted that she had embezzled a total of approximately $54,317.19 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On October 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Robert Edward Martin, co-conspirator of Elizabeth Jane George (former recording secretary and Disaster Relief Benefit Fund Committee Chairperson of United Steelworkers Local 8-9336), was indicted for conspiring to embezzle union funds and the falsification, concealment and destruction of the union's records. In addition, Martin was charged with both conspiracy to commit a crime against the United States and harboring and concealing from arrest a fugitive from justice. These charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office.
On October 4, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Dee Dee Gregory Lacy, former secretary-treasurer of Postal Workers Local 2695, was sentenced to six months home confinement, five years probation, and 150 hours community service. Lacy was ordered to make restitution of $2,200, pay a special court assessment of $300, and participate in both a mental health treatment program and financial counseling under probation guidance. On July 25, 2002, Lacy pled guilty to embezzling union funds, theft of Postal Service funds, and access device fraud following a joint investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office, the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General, and the Postal Inspection Service.
On October 3, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Isador Hampton, former president of Auto Workers (UAW) Local 835, pled guilty to one count of embezzling $10,389.00 in union funds. Hampton admitted he accepted unauthorized salary and expense payments from the union. The charge was brought following an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
On October 1, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, an information was filed charging Jerome J. Dube, former financial secretary of Carpenters Local 1865, with one count of embezzling $310.46 in union funds. The information noted that Dube obtained unauthorized cash advances against his union credit card in the amount of $8,584.41 and received $5,592.26 in unauthorized and excessive payments from Local 1865's checking accounts. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Office.
On September 26, 2002 in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, Kenneth D. Stacey, former president of Teamsters Local 651, pled guilty after being charged in a one-count information with embezzling $10,359.93 in union funds. The charge was brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On September 26, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Judith F. Hamilton, former financial secretary of Electrical Workers (IUE) Local 713, was sentenced to three years probation and ordered to pay $4,666.40 in remaining restitution. On May 9, 2002, she pled guilty to embezzling $6,766.40 in union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On September 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, Jeremias Lopez, former business manager of Laborers Local 220, was sentenced to ten months confinement followed by twelve months of supervised release, ordered to pay $10,814 in restitution to the union's bonding company, ordered to pay a special assessment of $25, and ordered to be subject to regular drug testing. The court recommended that the sentence be served at the Turning Point drug/alcohol rehabilitation center in Bakersfield. On July 10, 2002, Lopez pled guilty to falsifying union records and admitted embezzling union receipts between $10,000 and $30,000 following an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On September 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, Willie Corbett, former delegate of Maintenance of Way Employees Lodge 616, was indicted for the concealment of a union record. The indictment charges that he concealed details of his travel expenses on a union record. These charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On September 25, 2002, in Linn County, Iowa, an outstanding warrant was executed with the arrest of Karl Roush, former business manager of Local 497 of the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union (HERE). At the arraignment hearing, he pled not guilty to a charge of felony theft of union funds. These charges are the result of an investigation conducted by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
On September 23, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Mike Bruce, former secretary-treasurer of the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical & Energy Workers (PACE), Local 5-80, was sentenced to one month of home detention followed by three years of supervised probation and ordered to pay $6,923 in restitution to the union. He previously pled guilty to making false entries in required union records to conceal his embezzlement of $6,923 in union funds after he was charged in a two-count indictment following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On September 23, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, Nolan Butler, former president of Bakery & Tobacco Workers Local 366G, pled guilty to embezzling $14,619.46 in union funds. He admitted forgery and making unauthorized personal charges and cash advances using the union's credit card. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Dallas District Office.
On September 19, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, Pedro Ojeda, former secretary-treasurer of Musicians Local 23, pled guilty to one count of embezzling an unspecified amount of union funds. He had been charged in a two-count indictment on July 3, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On September 18, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Jack Hatch, former president of Local 43 of the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union (RWDSU), pled guilty to embezzling $40,782.49 in union funds. He was indicted on March 28, 2002 for the embezzlement of at least $70,000 following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On September 17, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, Kim M. Connor, former financial secretary of United Auto Workers Local 469, was charged with one count of embezzling $3,365 in union funds and one count of filing a false LM-2 report. The information also noted that she had embezzled a total of approximately $54,317.19 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On September 17, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, Gregory Carpenter, former president of Sheet Metal Workers Local 93, pled guilty to falsifying union records. An information filed on August 15, 2002, charged Carpenter with the submission of fraudulent lost time claims to his union. These charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
On September 17, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, Geoffrey R. Barron, former business manager/financial secretary-treasurer of Carpenters Local 2471, was indicted on one count of embezzlement of $29,855.26 of local union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On September 13, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Martin J. Mone, former financial secretary of Auto Workers Local 1052, pled guilty to embezzling $6,264.97 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On September 11, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, Thomas C. Bailey, former president and business manager of the American Federation of Musicians, Local 136, was found guilty by a federal jury of both counts in a two count indictment of embezzling $15,601.80 of union funds and filing a false annual financial report, following an investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office.
On September 10, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona, Gregory B. Floto, former president of the National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 116, was sentenced to six months of home detention, three years of probation, fined $2,000, ordered to pay a $100 special assessment, and ordered to pay $7,714.68 in remaining restitution to the union (or bonding company). On March 15, 2002, Floto pled guilty to making a false statement to a federal agent to conceal his embezzlement of $15,714.21 in union funds after being charged in a seven-count indictment. This case was prosecuted by attorneys from the Public Integrity Section of the U.S. Department of Justice, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office and U.S. Customs Internal Affairs Tucson office.
On September 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, Cathy R. Josselyn, former bookkeeper of Teamsters Local 853, pled guilty to one count of making false entries in union financial records, following an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On September 6, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, Deborah S. Bailey, former office manager of the American Federation of Musicians Local 136, pled guilty to embezzling $15,601.80 in union funds, following an investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office.
On September 6, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, David Dobry, former secretary-treasurer of Boilermakers Lodge 177, was sentenced to five months imprisonment followed by five months of home detention followed by three years of supervision. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $61,510. He pled guilty to embezzling $61,510 in union funds on July 2, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On September 5, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon, Robert Mayhew and John Lontine, former union pension fund trustees, pled guilty to charges that they knowingly and willfully caused false reports to be filed on behalf of their respective trust funds. Both failed to disclose gifts received from Capital Consultants, LLC (CCL). CCL substantially paid the expense for Mayhew to take a hunting trip to New Mexico. Mayhew was a trustee for (and CCL provided investment management services to) the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Eighth District Pension Fund. Lontine took a fishing trip to Alaska and accepted season tickets for both the Denver Broncos and Colorado Rockies, all paid for by CCL. Lontine was a trustee for (and CCL provided investment management services to) the Sheet Metal Workers Local 9 Pension Plan. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office, the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration and Office of Inspector General, the IRS, and the FBI.
On September 3, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Laura L. McClurg, former secretary-treasurer of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1195, was charged in an information with concealment of labor union records. The information charges that she concealed and withheld records and statements required to be kept by a labor union in order to conceal her embezzlement of $2,295 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia District Office.
On August 29, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, Lenette Kendrick, former secretary-treasurer of the Rural Letter Carriers in Clallam and Jefferson Counties, was sentenced to two years probation, fined $500, and ordered to pay the balance of $212 in restitution for the falsification of the union's annual financial report. Kendrick pled guilty on June 20, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office.
On August 29, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Judicial District of Puerto Rico, Abdiel Navarro, former office administrator of the Union General de Trabajadores, pled guilty to three counts of embezzling a total of $15,005.63 in union funds, three counts of embezzling a total of $20,556.31 from a welfare benefit plan, and two counts of falsifying welfare benefit plan records. He had been arrested and arraigned on July 1, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On August 27, 2002, in the Superior Court of Wayne County, Indiana, Priscilla Crist, former president of United Auto Workers Local 2374, pled guilty to the embezzlement of $4,092 in union funds. She was sentenced to one year in jail with all but ten days suspended, one year of probation, and ordered to pay court costs and complete full restitution to the union. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On August 23, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Linda G. Chargois, former office secretary of Laborers Local 80, was sentenced to three months imprisonment followed by three years probation and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $35,171.10. She had pled guilty on April 1, 2002, and had been indicted on January 9, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On August 23, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois, Michele Hearn, former financial secretary of Electrical Workers (UE) Local 1174, pled guilty to embezzling $29,561.02 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On August 23, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada, Deborah Partida, former secretary-treasurer of Postal Workers Local 761 and former treasurer of the Postal Workers Nevada State Association, was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment followed by three years probation and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $193,337.33. She had pled guilty on May 17, 2002. She had been indicted on March 12, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office.
On August 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Francis J. Massey, a partner in the accounting firm Thomas Havey LLP, pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with aiding and abetting a conspiracy to make false statements and to defraud. The proffer of facts in the case details how Massey and other Havey accountants assisted the three top officers of the International Association of Iron Workers and others in falsifying Form LM-2 reports from 1992 to 1999 to hide in excess of $1.5 million in personal dining, drinking, and entertainment expenses. Disbursements that should have been reported by officers' and employees' names in Schedules 9 and 10 of Forms LM-2 were instead improperly concealed in categories on the report for "Office and Administrative Expenses" and "Educational and Publicity Expenses." These charges had been brought as part of an ongoing investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office, the FBI, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia. To date, in addition to Massey, the investigation has led to the guilty pleas of six former officers and employees of the Iron Workers and another Havey accountant and the indictment of Jake West, former president, and LeRoy Worley, former general secretary. (For more information, see the criminal enforcement actions entries of August 7, 2002; June 4, 2002; June 3, 2002; December 12, 2001; August 29, 2001; and June 17, 2001.)
On August 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Delbert Steward, former president of Steelworkers Local 02-1279, pled guilty to embezzling $9,578 in union funds. He had been charged in a criminal complaint following an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
On August 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon, Dean Kirkland, a former employee of Capital Consultants, LLC, was indicted on 20 counts of giving, offering and promising gratuities to Gary Kirkland and Robert Legino, union pension trustees, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1954 and aiding and abetting in violation of 18 U.S.C. 2. He was also charged under 18 U.S.C 981 and 28 U.S.C. 2461 requiring forfeiture of any property obtained as a result of the other counts in the indictment. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office, the IRS, the FBI, the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration, and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On August 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon, Gary Kirkland and Robert Legino, former union pension fund trustees, were indicted on 12 counts and 8 counts respectively of accepting and soliciting gratuities to use their influence as pension plan trustees in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1954 and aiding and abetting in violation of 18 U.S.C.2. Both were also charged under 18 U.S.C 981 and 28 U.S.C. 2461 requiring forfeiture of any property obtained as a result of the other counts in the indictment. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office, the IRS, the FBI, the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration, and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On August 21, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, James Clem, former business manager and financial secretary of Painters Local 80, pled guilty to embezzling $15,977 in both union funds and apprenticeship/training funds. He had been charged in a 16-count indictment following an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On August 19, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Hugh C. Credle, former president of Postal Workers Local 1616, pled guilty to making false entries in required union records. He admitted making the false entries in order to conceal his embezzlement of union funds totaling $8,163.09. Credle had been charged in a two-count indictment on April 17, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On August 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, Gregory Carpenter, former president/organizer of Sheet Metal Workers Local 93, was charged in an information with embezzling union funds by submitting false lost time claims to his union. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
On August 14, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, Donald Stevens, former secretary-treasurer of Sheet Metal Workers Local 93, was indicted on charges of embezzling $41,550 from the Local 93 Sheet Metal Welfare Fund. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
On August 14, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Tony Evans, former treasurer of Stage and Picture Operators Local 197, pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with embezzling $16,319.56 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On August 14, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Joyce Griffin, former office secretary for the New Orleans Metal Trades Council, pled guilty to embezzling $2,383 in union funds. She admitted to charging personal items to the union's charge accounts and taking cash from the union's petty cash fund. She had been charged in a one-count information on April 25, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On August 12, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, Laverdia Ann Brockman, the former bookkeeper for Plumbers Local 155 who pled guilty to one count of embezzlement, was sentenced to five years probation, including six months in home detention with electronic monitoring, assessed $100, and ordered to make full restitution of $57,938.46 ($9,400 had already been paid to the bonding company). The charges were brought following an investigation by the Dallas District Office.
On August 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, Michael Van Bibber, former business manager/financial secretary of Asbestos Workers Local 87, pled guilty to embezzling $30,260.57 in union funds. He admitted to charging personal expenses to the union's credit card, obtaining duplicate expense reimbursements, and taking cash from union receipts. He had been indicted on June 5, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On August 8, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, Thomas A. Lannon, former secretary-treasurer of Machinists Lodge 1562, pled guilty to embezzling $13,175 in union funds. He admitted writing unauthorized checks to himself and not depositing cash receipts. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office.
On August 7, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, James R. Dawson, Sr., president of Postal Mail Handlers Local 325, pled guilty to embezzling $9,401 in union funds. He admitted to obtaining unauthorized cash advances with the union's credit card and using the money for gambling. Loyd C. Manning, the union's former treasurer and current comptroller, pled guilty to filing a false report. He admitted signing the union's Form LM-2 for the year 2000 knowing it contained false information in that Dawson's embezzlement of union funds was not reported. Dawson and Manning had been indicted on May 21, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On August 7, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, Robert Shannon, former executive board member/trustee of Elevator Constructors Local One, was sentenced to 400 hours of community service and three years probation, fined $5,000, and ordered to make restitution of $5,107. He had pled guilty to Unlawful Labor Payments in violation of 29 U.S.C. 186. The plea was in connection with the investigation of corruption in Local One relating to a no-show scheme at 19 construction sites in New York City. Union officials acquired money by falsely claiming that certain union members had worked certain hours, when in reality they had not, and in many cases were actually working at other construction sites. The charges had been brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the FBI, and the IRS.
On August 7, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, the grand jury returned a three-count indictment against Jake West, general president emeritus of the Iron Workers International Union, and LeRoy E. Worley, former general secretary. The new indictment charges West and Worley with conspiracy, embezzlement from a labor union, aiding and abetting, and embezzlement from an employee pension benefit plan. West and Worley are charged with causing illegal payments to be made to Worley totaling over $217,000 from the union for salary and expenses after Worley retired, and totaling over $37,000 for a pension that Worley was not entitled to receive. The new indictment represents a second indictment of West who was previously charged in a 51-count indictment on December 12, 2001. The new indictment supercedes a previous one-count indictment of Worley on May 17, 2002. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office, the FBI, the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia.
On August 7, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, John L. Dorrier, Jr., former business manager of Operating Engineers Local 66, was indicted for embezzlement of union funds, bank fraud, forgery, and interference with the administration of Internal Revenue Laws. The indictment alleged that he falsified 976 picket expense vouchers causing the union to issue checks that he cashed for a total of approximately $14,400 from August 8, 1997 through November 1998. He is alleged to have previously converted $37,295 in union funds to his own use from 1992 through August 7, 1997. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the IRS Criminal Investigation Division.
On August 6, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, Steven Pautz, former president of Machinists Lodge 251, was indicted on two counts of embezzling $1,450 in union funds and two counts of making false entries in union records. The indictment also noted that he had embezzled a total of $12,257.75 in Lodge 251 funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On August 5, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Barbara A. Ryan, former financial secretary of Local 5-626 of the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers International Union (PACE), was indicted for embezzling $117,734.18 in union funds and entering into a scheme to defraud her employer, BP Chemicals, of $33,578.59 for work she did not perform. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office and the FBI.
On July 31, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Dwight West III, a former organizer for Painters District Council 78, pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with embezzling $30,343.86 from Painters Local 164 while serving as the appointed treasurer of the local. He had been charged on July 12, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On July 29, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Wesley J. Sharp, former financial secretary -treasurer of Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers International Union Local 6-647, was sentenced to 36 months probation and was ordered to make restitution to the union of $9,362 and to complete 100 hours of community service. He had pled guilty on May 6, 2002, to embezzling $13,062.86 in union funds. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On July 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, Fred T. Risius, business manager of Laborers Local 177, pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with embezzling $100,060 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
On July 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, Henry Jannenga, vice president and training fund coordinator of Laborers Local 177, pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with embezzling $20,460 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
On July 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Dee Dee Gregory Lacy, former secretary-treasurer of Postal Workers Local 2695, pled guilty to a three-count information charging her with embezzling $4,803 in union funds, theft of U.S. Postal Service funds in excess of $1,000, and access device fraud to obtain in excess of $1,000. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On July 24, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Martin Mone, former financial secretary of Auto Workers Local 1052, was indicted on charges of embezzling $6,264.97 in union funds and falsifying union records. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On July 23, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Diane Lewis, former bookkeeper for the Northeast District Council of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union, pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds in excess of $28,000. She had been indicted on November 14, 2000, following an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia District Office.
On July 23, 2002, in Marion County (Indiana) Superior Court, Mack Dykes, former president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 1411, was sentenced to four years imprisonment and ordered to make restitution of $7,181.14. He had pled guilty to two counts of forgery in the amount of $7,100 on June 25, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On July 19, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, Mary Dolores Anderson, former secretary-treasurer of Communications Workers Local 9417, pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds and agreed to make full restitution of up to $89,422.58. She had been indicted on September 28, 2000, following an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office.
On July 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Lori Delaney, former bookkeeper for Sheet Metal Workers Local 80, pled guilty to embezzling approximately $18,000 in union funds. The charges had been brought on February 6, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On July 12, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico, David Rux, a former business representative for Machinists Local Lodge W2 in Aberdeen, Washington, pled guilty to 7 counts of embezzling a total of $21,557 in union funds and 15 counts of falsifying union records. He had been charged in a sealed indictment on March 27, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington following an investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office.
On July 12, 2002 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Edward A. Ramsey, former president of Steelworkers Local 9336, pled guilty to conspiracy to embezzle union funds and make false entries in union books, and two counts of embezzlement of union funds. Both parties stipulated that the amount of loss attributable to the defendant was $5,065.76. The charges had been brought on February 19, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On July 12, 2002 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, William E. Fricker, former president and grievance committee chairman of Steelworkers Local 9336, pled guilty to conspiracy to embezzle union funds and two counts of embezzlement of union funds. Both parties stipulated that the amount of loss attributable to the defendant was $6,372.29. The charges had been brought on February 19, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On July 12, 2002 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Rhonda L. Creed, former vice-president of Steelworkers Local 9336, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to embezzle union funds and make false entries in union books. Both parties stipulated that the amount of loss attributable to the defendant was $3,122.64. The charges had been brought on February 19, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On July 11, 2002 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Joseph W. Burress, former financial secretary of Steelworkers Local 9336, pled guilty to conspiracy to embezzle union funds and make false entries in union books, and two counts of embezzlement of union funds. The parties stipulated that the amount of loss attributable to the defendant was $3,100.10. The charges had been brought on February 19, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On July 10, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, Jeremias Lopez, former business manager of Laborers Local 220, pled guilty to falsifying union records. Under terms of a plea agreement entered and accepted by the court, he also admitted to having embezzled receipts of the local, causing a loss of between $10,000 and $30,000. Charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On July 8, 2002, in Cherokee County (Iowa) court, Diana Commons, former secretary of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1523, was named in a criminal complaint with felony theft in the amount of $3,192. The charges, which allege that she fraudulently received state unemployment benefits by concealing salary payments from Local 1523, were brought following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
On July 8, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, Gwendolyn Meadows, former bookkeeper of Mail Handlers Local 334, pled guilty to one count of embezzling $27,882.16 in union funds. She had been indicted on March 20, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On July 5, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, John Mylek II, former treasurer of Plasters & Cement Masons Local 886, was charged in an information with embezzling $7,551.28 in union funds and $675 in employee benefit plan funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office, the FBI, and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On July 3, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, Pedro Ojeda, former secretary-treasurer of Musicians Local 23, was indicted on one count of embezzling an unspecified amount of union funds and one count of falsifying union records. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On July 3, 2002, in the Superior Court of the State of Arizona, Maricopa County, Mary Katherine Johnson, former treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees Local 2552, was sentenced to incarceration for four months followed by five years probation and was ordered to make full restitution to the union of $28,853.69. She had pled guilty on June 3, 2002, to attempted theft following an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On July 2, 2002, in Wayne County (West Virginia) court, Dwight D. Icenhower, former secretary-treasurer of Transportation Communication Workers Lodge 6455, was indicted on one count of embezzling $3,953.44 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office.
On July 2, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, David Dobry, former secretary-treasurer of Boilermakers Lodge 177, pled guilty to one count of embezzling $61,510 in union funds. He had been indicted on February 5, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On July 1, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, Abdiel Navarro, former office administrator of the Union General de Trabajadores, was arrested, arraigned, and pled not guilty to three counts of embezzling a total of $20,556.31 from an employee welfare benefit plan, two counts of falsifying benefit plans records, and three counts of embezzling a total of $15,005.63 in union funds. Bond was set at $50,000. He had been indicted on June 26, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On June 26, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, Efrain Tulier, former secretary-treasurer of Communications Workers Local 2185, was indicted on one count of embezzling $13,467 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
On June 25, 2002, in Marion County (Indiana) court, Mack Dykes, former president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 1411, pled guilty to two counts of forgery in the amount of $7,100. He had been indicted on March 21, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On June 24, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, Nancy L. Barber, former office secretary for Ironworkers Local 12, pled guilty to one count of embezzling $57,769.74 in union funds. The charges had been brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office, the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration, and the FBI.
On June 21, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of New York, Anna May Ervolino, former officer of the Buffalo and Western New York Hospital and Nursing Home Council and Hotel and Restaurant Employees Local 4 and their associated funds, was sentenced to one year probation and 150 hours of community service and was fined $5,000. She had pled guilty on March 22, 2002 to one count of willful and unlawful failing to disclose for a benefit plan annual report a payment to a party in interest. She had previously made restitution of $144,470.79 to the unions and the funds. The charges had been brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office, the FBI, and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On June 20, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Toy Jones, secretary-treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees Local 1012, was indicted under 18 U.S.C. 661 on charges of embezzling in excess of $41,000 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office.
On June 20, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Delbert Steward, former president of Steelworkers Local 1279, was charged in a criminal complaint with one count of embezzling $9,578.87 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
On June 20, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, Joseph Martin, brother of Thomas Martin, former business manager of Plumbers Local 15, pled guilty to one count of aiding and abetting an embezzlement of $9,177 in union funds. According to the plea and cooperation agreement, Joseph Martin presented bills for plumbing services and materials for work on a house he was constructing to Thomas Martin, who arranged the payment of $9,177 for Joseph Martin's plumbing work through the Local 15 Target Fund. Joseph Martin had been indicted on April 17, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office and the FBI.
On June 20, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, Lenette Kendrick, former secretary-treasurer of the Rural Letter Carriers in Clallam and Jefferson Counties, pled guilty to a one-count information that had been filed on May 30, 2002, charging her with false reporting. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office.
On June 19, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Judith F. Hamilton, former financial secretary of Electrical Workers (IUE) Local 713, pled guilty to an information charging her with embezzling $6,766.40 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On June 17, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii, Roberta Cabral, a former Unity House consultant, pled guilty to three felony charges of evading personal income taxes in 1992 and 1993 and wire fraud for attempting to defraud Unity House. She also pled guilty to a misdemeanor charge of failing to file an individual federal income tax return for 1994. Unity House is a non-profit organization established to benefit members of Hotel and Restaurant Employees Local 5 and Hawaii Teamsters locals. The fraud involved a kickback scheme to defraud Unity House by inflating the costs of producing a television movie. Cabral had been indicted on May 4, 2000 on charges of wire fraud in the amount of $150,000 following a joint investigation by the OLMS Honolulu Resident Investigator Office and other federal law enforcement agencies.
On June 14, 2002, in Winona County (Minnesota) circuit court, a criminal complaint was signed charging Jeffrey J. Schueler, former trustee of Glass, Molders, Pottery Plastics & Allied Workers Local 63B, and former chairman of the Badger Foundry unit of Local 63B, with two counts of check forgery and one count of theft in relation to an embezzlement of $7,743 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On June 12, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, Robin Neither, former bookkeeper for Longshore & Warehouse Union Local 10, was sentenced to five years probation and six months home confinement with electronic monitoring and was ordered to pay full restitution of $42,487. Neither had earlier pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds following an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office.
On June 11, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Stephen Burks, former comptroller of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 71, was sentenced to 13 months in prison and fined $2,000. He had previously made restitution to the union of $24,000. On March 4, 2002, he had pled guilty to embezzling in excess of $23,000 following an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia District Office.
On June 7, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, Geri Abbe, former office secretary for the Western Association of Pulp & Paper Workers Local 5, was sentenced to two months of home confinement with electronic monitoring and five years probation. She was also ordered to perform 200 hours of community service. She previously made restitution of $14,754. She had pled guilty on March 22, 2002, to embezzling union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office.
On June 6, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, Raymond F. Pendygraft, former financial secretary of American Flint Glass Workers Local 1009, was sentenced to five years probation, including six months home incarceration with electronic monitoring, and ordered to pay restitution of $14,419.23 along with the costs of monitoring. On February 20, 2002, he had pled guilty to embezzling union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On June 5, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, Michael Van Bibber, former business manager/financial secretary of Asbestos Workers Local 87, was indicted on one count of embezzling $30,261 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On June 4, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Alfred S. Garappolo, a partner in the accounting firm Thomas Havey LLP, pled guilty to a two-count information charging him with being an accessory after the fact to embezzlement from an employee welfare benefit plan in violation of 18 U.S.C. 3 and concealing and covering up a material fact in a matter within the jurisdiction of the Department of Labor in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1001. He pled guilty to assisting Kerry Tresselt, the bookkeeper for the Iron Workers National Training Fund, in order to hinder or prevent her apprehension, trial and punishment for her embezzlement from the Training Fund. He also pled guilty to knowingly and willfully concealing and failing to disclose to OLMS investigators statements made at a September 1992 meeting by Victor Van Bourg, then general counsel of the Iron Workers International Union, to Jake West, then the international president. These statements were to the effect that the Havey Company should be replaced as the Iron Workers' accountants if Havey accountants did not assist the scheme to underreport and conceal the true nature and amount of the union's disbursements for its officers on the union's annual financial report, Form LM-2, filed with OLMS. The documents filed as part of the plea agreement charge that after the meeting, Havey accountants aided and assisted in the preparation of union reports that concealed the true amount of union disbursements for union officers Jake West, LeRoy Worley, and James Cole. This is part of an ongoing investigation that has resulted in the guilty pleas of six former officials and employees of the Iron Workers to a variety of embezzlement and conspiracy charges. Former President Jake West and former General Secretary LeRoy Worley, have been indicted and are separately awaiting trial. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office, the FBI, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia.
On June 4, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, Edward Carroll, vice president of 2 BW Development Corporation, pled guilty to an information charging him with obstruction of justice in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1503 and 3551. The charges were filed in connection with false information that he provided to a Federal grand jury. This prosecution resulted from a case relating to the April 16, 2002, indictment of seven individuals involved in a $10 million fraud against the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in the renovation of their new headquarters at 2 Broadway in lower Manhattan. The seven individuals included a developer, union officials from Operating Engineers Local 14, and members of Elevator Constructors, Local One, as well as two other individuals. This money was intended for vertical transportation costs relating to Elevator Constructors, Local One and Operating Engineers, Local 14 elevator operators. A substantial amount went to Frederick Contini, owner of 2BW Development, in the form of cash kickbacks for his participation in the scheme. Carroll, who was partners with Contini, submitted false invoices to the MTA from a subcontractor known as Links. These invoices purporting to be from Links totaled in excess of $13 million and were prepared by Carroll under the direction of Contini. When asked questions concerning the handling of Links invoices, Carroll misled the grand jury by leading it to believe that Links invoices had been handled like other invoices in the normal course of business. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the FBI, and the IRS.
On June 4, 2002, in Dunn County (Wisconsin) Circuit Court, Joanne M. Hase, former secretary-treasurer of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 727-D, entered a plea of no contest to theft of $1,000 or less in a business setting. She was placed on probation for one year, and imposition of sentence was withheld. The charges had been brought on April 10, 2002 following an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On June 3, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, a May 17, 2002, indictment was unsealed which charged LeRoy Worley, former general secretary of the Iron Workers International Union with embezzling an amount greater than $37,000 from an employee pension benefit plan in violation of 18 U.S.C. 664. The indictment charged that he resigned and retired when he was 58 years old and had worked between 17 and 18 years for the international union, but he was paid a full pension from the Iron Workers Staff Retirement Pension Fund as if he had retired at age 60 and as if he had worked 20 years for the international union. The indictment also charged that his annual salary preceding his retirement was approximately $152,000, yet he was paid a pension as if his annual salary preceding retirement had been $169,184. The charges were brought as the result of an investigation led by the OLMS Washington District Office and assisted by the FBI and the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration.
On June 3, 2002, in the Maricopa County (Arizona) Criminal Court, Katherine Johnson, former secretary-treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees Local 2552, pled guilty to one count of attempted theft. Per the plea agreement, and subject to the pre-sentencing investigation and the sentencing judge's approval, she will be placed on probation and pay restitution of $26,516. She had been charged in a criminal complaint on January 29, 2002, which was superceded by a local grand jury indictment on February 27, 2002. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On June 2, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico, Ygnacio Angel, former president of Postal Workers Local 402, was sentenced to six months home confinement with electronic monitoring and two years probation and was ordered to make restitution of $1,646.16 in addition to the $6,000 voluntary restitution previously made. He had earlier pled guilty to one records violation count following an investigation by the OLMS Denver District Office.
On May 31, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada, David S. Manes, former business representative of Steelworkers Local 711-A, was sentenced to three years probation, including six months of home confinement with electronic monitoring, and was ordered to make restitution of $15,657.77. On February 20, 2002, he had pled guilty to one count of a 153 count indictment charging him with embezzling union funds. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office.
On May 30, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Jimmy Reed, former secretary-treasurer of Communications Workers Local 3295, pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with false recordkeeping. He was sentenced to six months home confinement to run concurrently with six months probation. The charges had been brought on April 18, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On May 29, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, Anthony Brock, former secretary-treasurer of Steelworkers Local 4-6989, pled guilty to embezzling $12,573 in union funds. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office.
On May 29, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, Sullivan Hamlet, former president of UNITE Local 2603, was indicted on one count of embezzling $4,567 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On May 24, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, David Lareau, former business manager of Painters Local 160, was sentenced to two years probation and was fined $1,000. He had pled guilty on March 13, 2002, to willfully and knowingly withholding and concealing union financial records. He had been charged in an information on December 17, 2001, following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On May 23, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Utah, Jill C. Gonzales, spouse of a former secretary-treasurer of Maintenance of Way Employees Local 1227, was sentenced to six months home confinement and 24 months probation (concurrent with the home confinement), and was ordered to make restitution of the balance of $27,861 from a total of $49,706.46. She had pled guilty to mail fraud on March 13, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Denver District Office.
On May 22, 2002 in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Darvin Collins, former business manager of IBEW Local 16, was indicted on one count of embezzling $25,370 from the Local's Target Fund, one count of embezzling $1,434.50 in local dues money, and two counts of falsifying union records. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On May 21, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota a superceding indictment was returned against Thomas Martin, former business manager of Plumbers Local 15, and Joseph Biernat, Minneapolis city councilman. The superceding indictment contained the same five counts against Thomas Martin and five counts against Joseph Biernat that were in the original April 17, 2002 indictment. It added two additional counts of mail fraud against both Joseph Biernat and Thomas Martin, and added three additional counts of embezzling a total of $25,446 in union funds, one count of obstruction of justice concerning an OLMS investigation, and one count of concealing a material fact from OLMS against Thomas Martin. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office and the FBI.
On May 21, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, James Dawson, Sr., president of Postal Mail Handlers Local 325, and Loyd Manning, comptroller and former treasurer of Postal Mail Handlers Local 325, were indicted. James Dawson, Sr. was indicted on one count of embezzling $9,401 in union funds and Loyd Manning was indicted on one count of filing a false report. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On May 17, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada, Deborah Partida, former secretary-treasurer of Postal Workers Local 761 and former treasurer of the Postal Workers Nevada State Association, pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds. According to the plea memorandum, she embezzled approximately $200,000 from the unions by making unauthorized payments by check and credit card to herself and her creditors. She had been indicted on March 12, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office.
On May 16, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Emmanuel Graham, former president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 2031, on trial before a judge magistrate, was acquitted on 14 misdemeanor counts of violating 18 U.S.C. 641. Mr. Graham had been charged in a 32 count indictment on June 20, 2001, with violating 18 U.S.C. 287 by filing false claims for travel and per diem with the Veterans Administration when he had already been reimbursed for those expenses by the union and 16 counts of violating 18 U.S.C. 641 for theft of U.S. government money corresponding to those claims. Pursuant to an agreement, the subject was tried on the misdemeanor charges only and the felony charges were dropped at the conclusion of the court proceedings. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On May 14, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, Kelli S. LaLonde, a former bookkeeper of Carpenters Local 278, was charged in a criminal complaint with embezzling $3,926.63 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office.
On May 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Judith F. Hamilton, former financial secretary of Electrical Workers (IUE) Local 713, was charged in an information with embezzling $6,766.40 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On May 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Edward K. Wiebeck, Sr., former business manager of Laborers Local 503, pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with embezzling $32,790.82 in union funds. The charges had been brought on April 9, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
On May 6, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Wesley J. Sharp, former financial secretary-treasurer of Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers International Union Local 6-647, pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with embezzling $13,062.86 in union funds. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On April 29, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois, an information was filed charging John Cornwell, former financial secretary-treasurer for Sheet Metal Workers Local 479, with one count of embezzling "more than $10,000" in union funds. He pled guilty and in the related plea agreement admitted embezzling "over $50,000" and agreed to make restitution in the amount of $52,009.33. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On April 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Joyce Griffin, former office secretary of the New Orleans Metal Trades Council, was charged in a one-count information with embezzling $2,383 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On April 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, L. Ann Brockman, former bookkeeper for Plumbers Local 155, signed a plea agreement in which she agreed to plead guilty to one count of embezzling union funds and make full restitution of $67,338. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Dallas District Office.
On April 23, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Steven Call, former president of Musicians Local 150, was sentenced to five years probation, ordered to perform 250 hours of community service, and ordered to make restitution of $18,536. On November 29, 2001, he had pled guilty to embezzling union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Springfield, Missouri Resident Investigative Office.
On April 23, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado, Bobby Ray Putnam, former secretary-treasurer of Communications Workers Local 14708, was sentenced to five years probation, including six months in home detention with electronic monitoring , and was ordered to make restitution of $18,026.95. He had earlier pled guilty to embezzling union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Denver District Office.
On April 23, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon, Jeffrey Grayson, former CEO of Capital Consultants, LLC, pled guilty to one count of mail fraud in connection with devising a scheme to defraud union pension plans, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1341, and one count of assisting in the preparation of a false tax return, in violation of 26 U.S.C. 7206(2). He had been indicted on October 2, 2001, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office, the IRS, the FBI, the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration, and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On April 19, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Richard Adams, former treasurer of Fire Fighters Local 639, was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment and three years probation and was ordered to make restitution of $144,939.46. He had pled guilty on January 28, 2002, to one count of bank fraud following a joint investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office and the FBI.
On April 18, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Jimmy Reed, former secretary-treasurer of Communications Workers Local 3295, was charged in an information with one count of false recordkeeping. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On April 18, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Willie Ray Walker, former secretary-treasurer of International Longshoremen's Association Local 1349, was sentenced to 12 months plus one day imprisonment and three years of supervised release and was ordered to make total restitution of $91,423.11. He had pled guilty on January 25, 2002 to embezzling union funds following a joint investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office, the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General, and the FBI.
On April 17, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Robert D. King, Jr., former financial secretary of Roofers Local 86, was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment and three years probation and was ordered to make restitution of $130,507. He had pled guilty on December 11, 2001, to embezzling union funds and employee benefit (apprenticeship) funds following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On April 17, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, Thomas Martin, former business manager of Plumbers Local 15, and Joseph Biernat, Minneapolis city councilman, were indicted on one count of conspiracy to extort under color of official right in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1951 (Hobbs Act), one count of embezzling $2,700 in union funds, and one count of mail fraud. Thomas Martin was further indicted on two counts of embezzling $15,177 in union funds, and Joseph Biernat was further indicted on one count of extortion under color of official right in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1951 and one count of making a false statement. Also indicted was Joseph Martin, Thomas Martin's brother, on one count of aiding and abetting an embezzlement of $9,177 in union funds. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office and the FBI.
On April 17, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Hugh Credle, former president of Postal Workers Local 1616, was indicted on one count of embezzling $8,163 in union funds and one count of making false entries in union records. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On April 17, 2002, in Marion County (Indiana) state court, James M. Johnson, former president of Auto Workers Local 361, was charged in a one-count information with theft for embezzling approximately $4,150 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On April 16, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, Frederick Contini, the developer of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's new headquarters at 2 Broadway in Manhattan; James Roemer, the treasurer of Operating Engineers Local 14; Morris Diminno, a Local 14 shop steward; Matthew Joseph Downey and David Coakley, members of Elevator Constructors Local 1; Constantine Vafias, a construction contractor; and John Vitiello were indicted on 55 counts relating to a $10,000,000 fraud against the Transportation Authority in connection with the renovation of its new headquarters. Charges in the indictment include interstate transportation of property or money obtained by fraud, wire fraud, mail fraud, unlawful payments to union officials and representatives, money laundering, obstruction of justice, witness tampering, and conspiracy. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office and the FBI.
On April 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Michelle Arington, former bookkeeper of Steelworkers Local 9-194-L, was sentenced to five years probation and was ordered to make restitution of $5,707. As a special condition of probation, she must disclose her conviction to any employer for whom she is handling funds. She had earlier pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds and one count of making false entries in required union records following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On April 12, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut, Ralph Varnardo, former president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 1674, was sentenced to five years probation and six months of home confinement and was ordered to make total restitution of $15,973.99. He had pled guilty on September 17, 2001, to one count of violating 18 U.S.C. 641, embezzlement of public money, after an investigation by the OLMS Boston District Office.
On April 11, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Raymond Robertson, former general vice president of the Iron Workers International Union and director of its National Training Fund, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud an employee welfare benefit plan, one count of aiding and abetting embezzlement from an organization receiving federal funds, and six counts of embezzlement from an employee welfare benefit plan. According to the plea agreement, he agreed to pay a fine of $30,000, to make restitution of $103,170, and to assist the government in other investigations. The charges had been brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office, the FBI, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia.
On April 11, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Steven Jones, former business manager/secretary-treasurer of Iron Workers Local 387, was sentenced to six months imprisonment and three years probation and was ordered to make restitution of $90,000. He had pled guilty on October 11, 2001 to embezzling union funds and apprenticeship funds following a joint investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office, the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration, and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On April 10, 2002, in Dunn County (Wisconsin) state court, Judy Hase, former secretary-treasurer of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 727-D, was charged in a criminal complaint with theft for embezzling $389 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On April 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Edward Wiebeck, Sr., former business manager of Laborers Local 503, was charged in an information with one count of embezzling $32,790.82 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
On April 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Robert Michael Bruce, former financial secretary of Local 5-0080 of the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers (PACE), was indicted on one count of embezzling $5,546 in union funds and one count of making false entries in union records. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On April 8, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Leonard Duge, former vice president of Communications Workers Local 53, pled guilty to making false entries in union records. He was sentenced to 24 months of unsupervised probation. He had previously made full restitution to the union of $22,137.66. The charges had been brought on March 5, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On April 5, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Carey McClure, former secretary-treasurer of Machinists Lodge 2731, pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with failure to maintain records. He was sentenced to three months home confinement with a monitor and 36 months probation, and he was ordered to make restitution of $16,621.22. Charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On April 1, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Linda G. Chargois, former office secretary for Laborers Local 80, pled guilty to count one (charging her with embezzling $57) of a 29-count indictment that had charged her with embezzling a total of $35,171 in union funds. She had been indicted on January 9, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On March 29, 2002, in Cuyahoga County (Ohio) court, Rollie McHugh, former financial secretary of Auto Workers Local 2358, was indicted on one count of theft, two counts of forgery, two counts of uttering, and two counts of tampering with records for embezzling between $500 and $5,000. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On March 28, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, Jessie A. McGee, former business agent of Teamsters Local 891, pled guilty to making false entries in union records and was sentenced to two years probation. He had previously made restitution of $2,782 to the union. He had been indicted earlier on one count of embezzlement and one count of falsifying union records following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On March 28, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Jack D. Hatch, former president of Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Local 43, was indicted on one count of embezzling approximately $70,000 in union funds by charging excessive and unauthorized lost time, making personal charges on the union's credit cards, and receiving unauthorized expense reimbursements. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On March 26, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, Robert Dean Meyer, former financial secretary of Carpenters Local 1481, was sentenced to 12 months and 1 day imprisonment and two years of supervised release. He was also ordered to make full restitution of $47,346 to the union and the union's bonding company. He had pled guilty to embezzling union funds on December 6, 2001, following an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On March 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Barbra Monfre, administrator of the Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 3, Elevator Division Retirement Plan, was arraigned on charges of embezzling approximately $289,000 in benefit plan funds. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office and the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration.
On March 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of New York, Anna May Ervolino, former vice president of Hotel and Restaurant Employees Local 4, pled guilty to one count of willful and unlawful failing to disclose for a benefit plan annual report a payment to a party in interest. She and her husband Frank Ervolino, former president of the local, had been indicted on May 16, 2000, on multiple charges of embezzlement and conspiracy relating to the local, an associated union, and their benefit plans. Mrs. Ervolino had earlier made restitution of $144,470.79 to the benefit plans. (Mr. Ervolino died subsequent to the indictment.) The charges had been brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office, the FBI, and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On March 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, Geri Abbe, former office secretary for Western Pulp and Paper Workers Local 5, pled guilty to one count of embezzling $15,690 in union funds. She had earlier been charged with embezzlement following an investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office.
On March 21, 2002, in Marion County (Indiana) court, Mack Dykes, former president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 1411, was indicted on five counts of forgery and one count of theft for embezzling approximately $7,100 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On March 20, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, Gwendolyn M. Meadows, former bookkeeper for Postal Mail Handlers Local 334, was indicted on one count of embezzling $27,882.16 in union funds by failing to deposit dues check-off checks and purchasing postal money orders for personal use with union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On March 20, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, Michael G. Brown, former treasurer of United Transportation Union Local 1007, was ordered to make full restitution to the local of $2,160.16, which he had already done. He had pled guilty on February 13, 2002, to making false entries in union records. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office.
On March 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Cheryl Rowe, former office secretary of Laborers Local 80, was charged in a one-count indictment with embezzling $93,430 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On March 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, John Serpico, former president of the Central States Joint Board of the Novelty and Production Workers (and a former vice president of the Laborers International Union) was sentenced to 30 months imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release on each of the six mail fraud counts of which he was convicted on July 16, 2001, with the sentences to run concurrently. He was also fined $100,000; ordered to make restitution of $30,000; and ordered to pay the cost of imprisonment. Maria Busillo, also a former president of the Central States Joint Board, was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment followed by three years supervised release on each of two mail fraud counts and one count of making a false statement on a loan application of which she had been convicted, with the sentences to run concurrently. She was also fined $100,000 and ordered to pay the cost of imprisonment. Gilbert Cataldo was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment followed by three years supervised release on each of three mail fraud counts of which he had been convicted, with the sentences to run concurrently. He was also fined $5,000 and ordered to perform 250 hours of community service. The charges had been brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office, the FBI, the IRS, and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On March 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona, Gregory B. Floto, former president of National Treasury Employees Chapter 116, pled guilty to one count of making false statements in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1001. He had earlier been charged with misappropriation of union funds following a joint investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office and U.S. Customs Internal Affairs.
On March 13, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, David Lareau, former business manager of Painters Local 160, pled guilty to willfully and knowingly withholding and concealing union financial records in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). He had been charged in an information on December 17, 2001 following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On March 13, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Utah, Jill C. Gonzales, spouse of a former secretary-treasurer of Maintenance of Way Employees Local 1227, pled guilty to mail fraud relating to a loss of union funds. The charges had been brought earlier following an investigation by the OLMS Denver District Office.
On March 12, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada, Deborah Partida, former secretary-treasurer of Postal Workers Local 761, was indicted on two counts of embezzling $132,824 from Local 761 and $1,764 from the Postal Workers' Nevada State Association and two counts of making false statements in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1001. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office.
On March 12, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, Nancy Groome, former treasurer of State, County and Municipal Employees, CSEA, Local 316, was sentenced to one year and a day imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release and was ordered to make restitution of $111,476.48. She had pled guilty to embezzlement of union funds on July 11, 2001, following an investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office.
On March 11, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, Daniel Valle, former president of State, County and Municipal Employees, CSEA, Local 316, was sentenced to six months imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release which will include six months of home confinement. He was also ordered to make restitution of $19,300.09. He had pled guilty to embezzlement of union funds on November 9, 2001, following an investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office.
On March 7, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Iowa, Terrance P. Baldridge, former secretary-treasurer of Auto Workers Local 1349, was sentenced to 24 months probation, fined $1,000, ordered to perform 100 hours of community service, and ordered to complete restitution to the union. He had pled guilty to embezzling union funds on December 3, 2001, following an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
On March 5, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Leonard Duge, former vice-president of Communications Workers Local 53, was charged with falsifying union records in an agreement with the Office of the United States Attorney. The agreement noted that he had already made full restitution to the local of $22,137.66. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On March 4, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Stephen Burks, former comptroller of State, County, and Municipal Employees Council 71, pled guilty to embezzling in excess of $23,000 in union funds. He had been indicted on May 15, 2001, following an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia District Office.
On February 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, Judy Domning, former executive director of the Minnesota Licensed Practical Nurses Association and former executive director of the Technical Employees Association of Minnesota, was convicted of making a false statement by making false entries in union records. She was sentenced to two years probation and barred from employment by unions "for life." She had pled guilty on August 24, 2001, and had previously made restitution of $18,772. The sentence was a downward departure for her substantial assistance in the prosecution of Elliot Cohn who had pled guilty to mail fraud on March 8, 2001. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On February 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, Geri E. Abbe, former office secretary for Western Pulp and Paper Workers Local 5, was charged in a one-count information with embezzling $15,690 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Seattle District Office.
On February 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, Patricia Ford, former secretary-treasurer of the New York State Public Employees Federation, was charged in a five-count indictment with embezzlement of approximately $10,000 in union funds, falsification of union records, false statements to a Federal investigator, receipt of a bribe, and embezzlement by an agent of an organization receiving Federal funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office.
On February 20, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, Deborah Bankston, former financial secretary-treasurer of Western Pulp and Paperworkers Local 83, pled guilty to one count of embezzlement of union funds. She was sentenced to five months imprisonment followed by three years of supervised probation and was ordered to make restitution of $64,711.65. An information had been filed against her on September 26, 2001, following an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office.
On February 20, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, Raymond F. Pendygraft, former financial secretary of American Flint Glass Workers Local 1009, pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with embezzling $14,419.23 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On February 20, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada, David S. Manes, former business agent of Steelworkers Local 711-A, pled guilty to one count of embezzling $1,500 in union funds. He had been indicted on August 29, 2001, following an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office.
On February 19, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Joseph Buress, Rhonda Creed, William Fricker, and Edward Ramsey, former officers of Steelworkers Local 9336, and Elizabeth George, former administrator of the local's disaster relief fund, were indicted on charges of conspiracy to embezzle union funds and making false entries in union records. This scheme involved $10,000 in false or excessive lost time payments. They were also charged with embezzling approximately $11,250 in union funds and making false entries in the benefit fund's records in a scheme involving fraudulent payments from the fund. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On February 14, 2002, in Kings County (California) Superior Court, Robert S. Ramos, former president of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 193-I, entered a plea of no contest to misdemeanor theft and was sentenced to one year in the county jail and three years of supervised probation and was fined $2,700. He was also required to pay $6,000 in restitution ($1,000 was previously paid) over the next three years. The charges had been brought on November 1, 2001, following an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office.
On February 13, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, Michael G. Brown, secretary-treasurer of United Transportation Union Local 1007, pled guilty to making false entries in union records to conceal his taking of union monies for his personal expenses. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office.
On February 13, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Stephen M. Hanlon, former secretary-treasurer of Steelworkers Local 01-4564-S, was sentenced to six months home confinement with electronic monitoring and five years probation and was ordered to make restitution of $21,657.58. He had pled guilty on November 16, 2001, to embezzling union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On February 12, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Kendall Williams, president of PNI Security Union, was indicted on ten counts of theft from a health and welfare fund totaling $32,183.84, four counts of embezzlement of union funds totaling $18,800, three counts of failure to maintain union records, and four counts of failure to file labor organization reports. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On February 12, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, William Fast, former treasurer of Steelworkers Local 1013-L, was sentenced to two years probation and fined $1,000. He had pled guilty on October 22, 2001, to embezzling $3,893.71 in union funds and had previously made restitution. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On February 11, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Donald Martin, former secretary-treasurer of Steelworkers Local 35-8681, was sentenced to five months at a half-way house and five months home detention followed by three years of supervised probation and ordered to make restitution of $10,400 and pay $5,075 in special assessments. He had been indicted on March 21, 2001, on charges of embezzling $10,591 in union funds, making false entries in union records, and false reporting. He was found guilty on all counts by a jury trial on October 10, 2001. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On February 8, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, Cathy Josselyn, former bookkeeper for Teamsters Local 853, was charged in a one-count information with making false entries in union financial records. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS San Francisco District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On February 6, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Lorri Delaney, bookkeeper for Sheet Metal Workers Local 80, was charged with embezzling $32,890 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
On February 6, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Lorri Delaney, bookkeeper for Sheet Metal Workers Local 80, was charged with embezzling $32,890 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
On February 5, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Joseph Argo, former president of Machinists Lodge 615, pled guilty to one count of making false entries in union records. He was sentenced to six months probation, fined $500, and ordered to make restitution of $2,643.80. He had been charged in a one-count information on January 15, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On February 5, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Charles Astin, former president of Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union Local 343, pled guilty to one count of failure to maintain records. He was sentenced to six months probation, fined $750, and ordered to make restitution of $1,735. He had been charged in a one-count information on January 15, 2002, following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On February 5, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, L. Ann Brockman, former office secretary for Plumbers Local 665, was indicted on 26 counts of embezzling $11,621 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Dallas District Office.
On February 5, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, 27 representatives and/or members of Elevator Constructors Local 1 were charged in a 137-count indictment with conspiracy, money laundering, extortion, witness tampering, mail fraud, tax evasion, and other racketeering crimes. The crimes were committed at more than 20 construction sites throughout New York City from 1989 through early 2001. During that time, contractors paid more than $3,000,000 in the names of no-show elevator operators and, with the addition of withholding taxes and contributions to benefit plans, the charged racketeering enterprise stole more than $6,000,000 from construction projects. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration, the FBI, and the IRS.
On February 5, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, David Dobry, former secretary-treasurer of Boilermakers Lodge 177, was indicted on one count of embezzling $61,510 in union funds, one count of filing a false report, and one count of destruction of union records. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On February 1, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Sharon K. Schmenk, former treasurer of Lima Memorial Professional Nurses Association, was sentenced to three years probation, the first six months to be spent in home confinement with an ankle monitor at a cost of $4.95 a day paid by her, and she was ordered to make full restitution. She had pled guilty on October 5, 2001, to embezzling $19,170 in union funds following an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.
On January 30, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, Roger Causby, former secretary-treasurer of Food and Commercial Workers Local 427, was sentenced to four months imprisonment and four months home detention, followed by two years of supervised probation. He had earlier pled guilty to embezzling union funds and had made restitution of $13,218.46. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On January 29, 2002, in the Maricopa County (Arizona) court, Mary Katherine Johnson, former treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees Local 2552, was charged in a criminal complaint with knowingly converting union funds of a value more than $25,000 but less than $100,000, with the intent to deprive the local of those funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On January 28, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, Richard S. Smith, former president of Electrical Workers Local 770, was charged in a one-count information with failure to maintain union records. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On January 28, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Richard Adams, former treasurer of Fire Fighters Local 639, pled guilty to bank fraud for a scheme to deprive the union of $142,715.78. The charges had been brought on January 17, 2002, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office and the FBI.
On January 25, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Willie Ray Walker, former secretary-treasurer of Longshoremen's Local 1349, pled guilty to a one-count indictment charging him with embezzling $91,423 in union funds. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office, the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General, and the FBI.
On January 24, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Roy Summerlin, former treasurer of Guards Independent Regional Council 10, was sentenced to three years supervised probation and ordered to make restitution of $1,212. Tom T. Hall, former vice-president of Regional Council 10, was sentenced to three years supervised probation and ordered to make restitution of $3,636.95. They had been charged on November 29, 2001, with making false entries in required union records and had pled guilty on January 22, 2002. The charges had been brought following an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On January 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Carey McClure, former secretary-treasurer of Machinists Lodge 2731, was indicted on one count of embezzling $16,917.13 in union funds and one count of failure to maintain records. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On January 22, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Ricky Sanders, former business manager of Roofers Local 136, was indicted on one count of embezzling $7,433.51. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On January 17, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Richard Adams, former treasurer of Firefighters Local 639, was charged in a one-count information with bank fraud in the amount of $3,139.25. The embezzlement of union funds totaled $144,939.46 and restitution will be based on that amount. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office and the FBI.
On January 17, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, James Bryant, former secretary-treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees Local 2061, was sentenced to three years probation, ordered to make restitution of $1,980, and fined $500. (He had previously made restitution of $1,500.) He had pled guilty on September 12, 2001, to two counts of theft by unlawful taking within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States following an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia District Office.
On January 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Joseph Argo, former president of Machinists Lodge 615, was charged in a one-count information with false recordkeeping. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On January 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Charles Astin, former president of Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union Local 343, was charged in a one-count information with failure to maintain records. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta District Office.
On January 9, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Linda Chargois, former office secretary of Laborers Local 80, was indicted on 29 counts of embezzling $35,171 in union funds. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
On January 7, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Hank Van Heyningen, former president of Christian Labor Union Local 17 (Dairy Employees), was sentenced to 36 months probation, 300 hours of community service, $100 restitution, and a $2,500 fine. He had pled guilty to extortion on October 23, 2001, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office, the FBI, and the Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General.
Last Updated: 02/12/10