On September 26, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, John Mills, a former member of Elevator Constructors Local One, pled guilty to an information charging him with conspiracy to demand and receive unlawful labor payments in violation of the Taft Hartley Act. This investigation was part of Elevator Constructors Local One operator no-show job scheme for which an indictment was filed on February 5, 2002. You can read more about the original indictment at http:// www. nlpc.org/olap/UCU3/05_04_02.htm
On September 25, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, Joseph Fusilli, former member of Elevator Constructors Local One, was sentenced to ten months in prison for violating the Hobbs Act. He was ordered to pay $10,000 in restitution and fined $2,000. On November 12, 2002, Fusilli pled guilty to an information charging him with illegal activity relating to the Loews Theatre Project; he had been indicted on February 5, 2002.
On September 12, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, James Roemer, former treasurer of Operating Engineers Local 14, was sentenced to 41 months imprisonment and three years probation for conspiracy to receive, possess, and dispose of money obtained by fraud and transported across state lines; making and receiving unlawful labor payments; engaging in unlawful monetary transactions; obstruction of justice; conspiracy to defraud the United States; and tax evasion. He was ordered to pay a total of $2.7 million in restitution and to forfeit $800,000 to the United States Government within 90 days of his guilty plea. He had been indicted on April 16, 2002, along with seven other individuals, including the developer of the 2 Broadway Project and Elevator Constructor Local One representatives, for illegal activity relating to defrauding the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority and ZAR Realty of more than $10 million in construction money that was intended for vertical transportation costs on the 2 Broadway project. On April 3, 2003, Roemer pled guilty to the charges following a joint investigation by the New York branch of the U.S. Dept. of Labor’s Ofc. of Labor-Mgmt. Standards, the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration, the FBI, and the IRS. [OLMS, 10/2/03, 10/9/03]
Former Treasurer Charged with Embezzlement in Ohio Federal Court
On September 25, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Russell Guy Taylor, former treasurer of Machinists Lodge 90, pled guilty to an information charging him with embezzling $36,142 in union funds. The information was filed on August 22, 2003. The charges follow an investigation by the Cleveland branch of the U.S. Ofc. of Labor Mgmt. Standards. [OLMS, 10/9/03]
Ex-President Indicted in Calif. Federal Court
On September 24, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, Brian Brabazon, former President of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 294-C, was indicted on one count of embezzlement. The indictment stated that in May 2001, Brabazon wrote an unauthorized check to himself in the amount of $3672.84 for expenses at a union conference he never attended. The indictment followed an investigation by the San Francisco branch of the U.S. Ofc. of Labor Mgmt. Standards. [OLMS, 10/2/03]