On March 30, 2011, in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada, Nichelle Alstatt, former Secretary-Treasurer of the Professional Office Personnel Alliance (POPA), located in Las Vegas, Nevada, was indicted on one count of embezzlement in the amount of $51,637.37, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c); one count of making false entries in required records, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c); and one count of making false entries in reports required to be filed under the LMRDA, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(b). The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On March 30, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Colin Rehrig, former bookkeeper for Carpenters Local 600 (located in Bethlehem, Pa.), was charged in a one-count information with embezzlement of union funds totaling $30,483.71, in violation of 29 U.S.C. Section 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia District Office.
On March 29, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, Nickolas Weihert, former Financial Secretary of Steelworkers Local 4845 (located in Waukesha, Wis.), was sentenced to three years probation, eight months home confinement, and was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and a $350 special assessment. Weihert previously made restitution in the amount of $17,316.62. On November 23, 2010, Weihert pled guilty to three counts of embezzling union funds. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On March 25, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, James Drury, former Secretary-Treasurer of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 3121 (located in Hialeah, Fla.), was sentenced to 24 months incarceration followed by three years supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $186,757.53 in restitution and a $100 special assessment. On January 11, 2011, Drury pled guilty to a one-charge information for embezzling union funds between December 2005 and March 2009 in the amount of $306,757.53. The sentencing follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Miami Resident Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On March 25, 2011, in the Canadian County Courthouse in El Reno, Oklahoma, an information was filed against Robert A. Ramirez, former President of National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 973 (located in El Reno, Okla.), charging him with 17 counts of uttering a forged instrument, in violation of Oklahoma State Statue 21 O.S. 1577. Ramirez pled guilty to the charge and was sentenced to 60 days in jail. The charge, guilty plea, and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Dallas District Office.
On March 23, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, Michael Williams, former President of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 780 (located in Eufaula, Ala.), was indicted on 10 counts of embezzlement totaling $4,906, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c), and four counts of making a false entry in a record required to be kept under the LMRDA, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c). The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On March 21, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, William Wyda, former Secretary-Treasurer of National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 253 (located in Hazelton, Pa.), was charged in a one-count information with embezzlement of union funds totaling $14,081.51, in violation of 29 U.S.C. Section 501(c). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia District Office.
On March 17, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, an information was filed against Richard Barnes, former President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 517 (located in Atlanta, Ga.), charging him with theft by deception totaling $14,024 under the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, Section 16-8-3(a), as assimilated under Title 18, United States Code, Section 13. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On March 17, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Charles Fleming, former President of Boilermakers Lodge 1814 (located in Bridge City, La.), pled guilty to a one count Bill of Information for making false entries in union records. Sentencing is scheduled for July 14, 2011. The plea follows an investigation by the OLMS New Orleans District Office.
On March 16, 2011, in Polk County, Minnesota Circuit Court, a complaint was filed against Michelle Jean Nelson, former President of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 7272 (located in Erskine, Minn.), charging her with felony theft by false representation between $1,000 and $5,000, in violation of Minnesota State Statute 609.52.2(3) and 609.52.3(3)(a). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office and OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On March 16, 2011, in the United States District Court, Northern District of Ohio, an information was filed charging two former officers of Steelworkers Local 982 (located in Wapakaneta, Ohio), with embezzlement of union funds. The information charges former President Stacy Sacks with embezzling $7,739.76 in union funds as well falsifying union records. Additionally, former Vice President Tim Fisher was charged with one count of embezzling $4,858.21. Finally, both former officers were charged together with purchasing a 42” flat screen television and home theater system for their personal use, valued at $1,520.77. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office and Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
On March 15, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Oscar Gatewood, former President of Steelworkers Local 842 (located in Detroit, Mich.), was sentenced to three years probation with the first six months served in home confinement with electronic monitoring. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2,666.61 and a $25 special assessment. On October 25, 2010, Gatewood pled guilty to one count of concealing union records. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
On March 14, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Donald Kister, former President of National Postal Mail Handlers Local 307 (located in Detroit, Mich.), pled guilty to one count of embezzling union funds in the amount of $4,137.35 between August 2006 and October 2007. Sentencing is scheduled for April 12, 2011. The plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
On March 9, 2011, in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, Stanley Barringer, former Vice President and Treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 3707 (located in Chicopee, Mass.), was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement, and was ordered to pay a $2,000 fine. In November 2010, Barringer pled guilty to one count of concealing a material fact, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1001. Before pleading guilty, Barringer made restitution in the amount of $22,180. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS New Haven Resident Investigator Office.
On March 9, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, Mark A. Winston, former President of Laborers Local 509 (located in St. Louis, Mo.), was indicted on one count of embezzlement of union funds in the amount of $11,057. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS St. Louis District Office.
On March 3, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Leonard Leibowitz, former attorney for the Independent Artists of America (IAA), a union representing ballet dancers in Manhattan, was indicted on one count of embezzlement of union funds in the amount of $350,000 and filing false reports with DOL. On March 14, 2011, Leibowitz self-surrendered. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office.
On March 3, 2011, in the Green Lake County, Wisconsin Circuit Court, a complaint was filed against Nancy Kumbier, former President of National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 1144 (located in Berlin, Wis.), charging her with Theft in a Business Setting (between $2,500 and $5,000), in violation of Wisconsin State Statute 943.20(1)(b) and (3)(bf). The complaint follows an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.
On March 3, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Warren Joseph Annunziata, Fund Administrator for United Craft and Industrial Workers Union Local 91 (a union that represents school bus drivers and matrons in New York City), was sentenced to 33 months in prison, two years supervised release, and was ordered to pay $250,000 in forfeiture and restitution. On February 26, 2010, Annunziata was indicted for extorting cash payments from union employers totaling at least $500,000. Annunziata further received tens of thousands of dollars from a union employer who placed money into a bank account controlled by Annunziata which Annunziata then used for personal expenses by utilizing a false identity and forged signatures. On July 29, 2010, Annunziata pled guilty to 18 U.S.C. 1951. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the Department of Labor’s Office of the Inspector General, and the FBI.
On March 3, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio (Western Division), Ellsworth Williamson, former President of Steelworkers Local 1967 (located in Hamilton, Ohio), was sentenced to one year probation and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2,293 and a $25 assessment. On December 7, 2010, Williamson pled guilty to a one-count information charging him with filing a false report. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Cincinnati District Office.
On March 2, 2011, in the United States District Court of the Eastern District of Arkansas, Peggy Bolen, former Treasurer of Steelworkers Local 898 (located in Redfield, Ark.), was indicted on one count of embezzlement of union funds in the amount of $61,541, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas District Office.
On March 2, 2011, in the United States District Court for the District of South Dakota, Terri Dunkelberger, former Financial Secretary Treasurer of Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1356 (located in Sioux Falls, S.D.), was indicted on three counts of embezzlement of union funds in the approximate amount of $4,148.98. On June 3, 2010, Dunkelberger was also indicted for one count of embezzlement of union funds in the approximate amount of $24,148.98. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office and Milwaukee District Office.
On March 1, 2011, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, an information was filed charging Williams Edwards, former President of AFSCME Local 1820 (located in Pontiac, Mich.), with willfully failing to maintain accurate records of lost time claims made by him and others resulting in him receiving $3,656.02 in union funds to which he was not entitled. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
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Criminal Enforcement Actions 2011
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.
Source: Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS)
