On February 8, Betty Illig, former secretary-treasurer for Graphic Communications International Union Local 638-S and the Tri-State District Joint Council, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio to embezzling $145,675 in union funds and covering up the thefts by submitting false information on the union’s financial reporting forms. Illig, a resident of East Liverpool, Ohio, a half-hour drive south of Youngstown, had been indicted last November. The local is also based in East Liverpool. (OLMS, 2/19/07; other sources).
Former Treasurer in Michigan Sentenced for Records Fraud
On January 29, Brad Harper, ex-treasurer of Local 1629 of the American Federation of Government Employees, was sentenced in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan to 14 months in prison and three years of supervised release for making false statements on the union’s annual financial report. He also was ordered to make restitution in the amount of $75,069.49 and pay a special assessment of $100. Harper pleaded guilty in August following an investigation by the U.S. Labor Department’s Office of Labor-Management Standards. The local represents employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Battle Creek, Mich. (OLMS, 2/19/08).
Chicago Local Treasurer Indicted for Mail Fraud
On January 30, William Sargent, former treasurer of AFGE Local 704, was indicted in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on one count of mail fraud involving a scheme to defraud the union of $31,015. (OLMS, 2/19/08).
President of Wisconsin Local Pleads Guilty to Embezzlement
On February 8, Carolyn M. Wallace, former president of United Steelworkers of America Local 02-356, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin to embezzling union funds in the amount of $25,200. She had been charged in December. (OLMS, 2/19/08).
West Virginia Local Office Employee Sentenced for Forgery
On January 30, Timothy A. Wilson, a former office employee of International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 271, was sentenced in the Circuit Court of Kanawha County, West Virginia (Charleston), to two years of probation for forgery. He pleaded guilty in November to one count of forgery in the amount of $168, but his real take was far higher; prior to the investigation Wilson paid $16,750 in restitution. (OLMS, 2/19/08).
Union Member in Alabama Charged with Embezzlement
On February 7, Bridgett Cardall Hooks, former secretary-treasurer of American Postal Workers Union Local 332, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama to one count of embezzling $10,820.17 in union funds. Hooks, 35, a resident of Enterprise, Ala., had been indicted last August. She had written checks to herself from the checking account of the Dothan-based local, and also had made improper purchases and withdrawals with her union debit card between October 31, 2005 and December 3, 2006. (OLMS, 2/19/08).
Former President of SW Ohio Local Charged with Fraud
On February 7, Brian Donley, former president of International Association of Machinists Lodge 2333, was charged in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio with one count of bank fraud totaling $11,565. Donley allegedly cashed fraudulent checks at the Security National Bank in Springfield, Ohio. The local is located in Fairborn, not far from Dayton. (OLMS, 2/19/08).
Wisconsin Treasurer Pleads No Contest to Theft, Sentenced
On February 4, John Sigafus, former secretary-treasurer of Machinists Local W-335, pleaded no contest in Douglas County (Superior), Wisconsin Circuit Court to theft of union funds. He subsequently was sentenced to one year of probation and ordered to make restitution in the amount of $5,363.91. (OLMS, 2/19/08).
Ex-Vice President in Cleveland Charged with Falsifying Records
On January 29, Kristen Swint, formerly vice president and secretary-treasurer of Machinists Local 2339-C, was charged in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio with one count of falsifying union records. The Cleveland-based local represents Continental and ExpressJet flight attendants in the Cleveland, Chicago and Detroit areas. (OLMS, 2/19/08).
Ohio Local Secretary-Treasurer Charged with Embezzlement
On February 6, Chad Mowery, former secretary-treasurer of Local 282 of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, was charged in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio with embezzling $2,537 in union funds. The local represents Indiana & Ohio Railroad employees. (OLMS, 2/19/08).
Ex-Tennessee President Charged with False Record-Keeping
On February 4, Pauline M. Gibson, former president of Drivers, Warehousemen, Maintenance and Allied Workers of America Local 1, an independent union, was charged in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee with making a false statement on a union financial reporting form. (OLMS, 2/19/08).