A union job-training program isn’t a cookie jar. Somehow that didn’t impress Willie Brown. Brown, 52, was indicted in federal court for the Eastern District of Texas this April for embezzling at least $80,000 from the Apprenticeship and Training Fund of United Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 237. Brown, who previously had served as president and training fund coordinator of the Texarkana union, committed eight alleged acts of theft during 1997-2002. The charges came in the wake of a joint investigation by the Labor Department’s Office of Labor-Management Standards and Employee Benefits Security Administration. (U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, April 1-September 30, 2007; John T. Floyd Law Firm, 12/10/07).
Delta Airlines Union Treasurer Sentenced for Embezzlement
On November 21, Kirk A. Tuttle, former treasurer of the Professional Airline Flight Control Association (Delta), was sentenced in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia to nine months in prison, two years of supervised release and 150 hours of community service for embezzling $172,846 in union funds. He also will have to pay an $8,000 fine and a $100 special assessment. Tuttle previously had paid more than $159,000 in restitution and pleaded guilty in September. The sentencing follows an investigation by the U.S. Labor Department’s Office of Labor-Management Standards. (OLMS, 12/7/07).
Ohio Local Secretary-Treasurer Sentenced for Theft
On November 28, William Pagano, former secretary-treasurer of National Association of Letter Carriers Branch 78, was sentenced in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio to six months in prison to be followed by six months of home detention and three years probation for embezzling $66,759.18 in union funds. He also was ordered to pay full restitution and a special assessment. The sentencing follows a Labor Department investigation. (OLMS, 12/7/07).
Secretary-Treasurer in Colorado Charged with Embezzlement
On November 5, Linda Peterson, formerly secretary-treasurer of Branch 715 of the American Postal Workers Union, was charged in federal court with embezzling $2,905 in union funds and $3,600 in U.S. Postal Service funds. The charges follow a joint investigation by the Labor Department and the U.S. Postal Service. (OLMS, 12/7/07).
Kansas Ex-Local Secretary Sentenced for Embezzlement
On November 29, Kelli Tyrell-Moore, former executive assistant of the Kansas State Nurses Association, was sentenced in federal court to eight months of confinement and three years of probation for embezzling union funds. She also will have to make restitution in the amount of $63,307. Tyrell-Moore pleaded guilty in July. (OLMS, 12/7/07).
Former Virginia Local Secretary-Treasurer Pleads Guilty to Theft
On November 21, Randy Greear, former secretary-treasurer of Division 37 of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia to embezzling union funds in the amount of $22,691.60. He had been indicted in September. (OLMS, 12/7/07).
Former President of Michigan Local Pleads Guilty to Theft
On December 3, Darren Johnson, former president of Chapter 78 of the National Treasury Employees Union, pled guilty in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan to one count of bank robbery and incidental crimes. He had been charged on November 16 with stealing $4,756.75 in union funds under the control of Comerica Bank. (OLMS, 12/7/07).
President of Upstate New York Local Pleads Guilty
On November 28, William Drake, current president of United Steelworkers of America Local 1013T, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York to failing to disclose information on financial reporting forms for the years 2001, 2002 and 2003. The plea agreement requires Drake to make restitution in the amount of $3,497.06. (OLMS, 12/07/07).
Ohio Secretary Charged with Making False Entries in Records
On November 30, Linda Leonard, former office secretary of Laborers International Union of North America Local 216, was charged in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio with one count of making false entries in union financial records. (OLMS, 12/7/07).