Anthony DiPace was found guilty of stealing $314,000 from a union benefit fund on Sept. 17. His sentencing has been set for Jan. 15. In Albany, DiPace was convicted of 11-counts incl. embezzlement, fraud and the unlawful collection of commissions between 1993 and 1996 when he was manager of the health and welfare plan of Laborers Intl. Union of North America Local 190.
DiPace stole $314,000 from the union in a series of financial trades through a private brokerage involving excessive commissions. Prosecutors said he violated federal rules that prohibit investment managers from also acting as brokers. An expert witness testified that the 2.09 percent average commissions DiPace charged the union was 16 times higher than the national average.
DiPace is serving a 30-month federal sentence for his conviction in Hawaii in 2000 for mail fraud involving another union. He was accused on misrepresenting and overstating his credentials in seeking a job as a financial manager of the Hotel Union and Hotel Industry of Hawaii Pension Plan. [Albany Business Review, 9/22/04]