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Labor Racket Weekly: Sad Start to 2018

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The first month of 2018 is coming to an end, and it was an embarrassing one for Big Labor. The Labor Department chronicled numerous union corruption stories in January. Read them all below:

  • On January 18th, 2018, in the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island, Richard D’Antuono, former Business Manager/Secretary Treasurer of the Operative Plasterers and Cement Masons (OPCM) Local 40 (located in Cranston, R.I.), pleaded guilty to one count of embezzling union funds (29 U.S.C. 501(c)), one count of embezzling from an employee benefit fund (18 U.S.C. 664), and aggravated identity theft (18 U.S.C. 1028A). The total amount embezzled was approximately $319,795.
  • On January 11th, 2018, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, Kimberly Steinhoff, former Treasurer of Steelworkers Local 87 (located in Munising, Mich.), pleaded guilty to a superseding one-count information charging her with falsification of financial records required to be kept by a labor union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c).
  • On January 9th, 2018, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, five individuals were indicted for Racketeering Conspiracy (18 U.S.C. 1962): Frank Cognetta, Secretary-Treasurer of United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1D (located in Brooklyn, N.Y.), Vincent D’Acunto, Jr., Secretary-Treasurer of UFCW Local 2D (located in Brooklyn, N.Y.), as well as Vincent Esposito, Steven Arena, and Frank Giovinco.  Cognetta was also charged with Bribery in Connection with Employee Benefit Plans (18 U.S.C. 1954) and Honest Services Fraud (18 U.S.C. 1346).  D’Acunto, Jr., Esposito, and Arena were also charged with Extortion Conspiracy (18 U.S.C. 1951).
  • On January 4th, 2018, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Maria Nunez, former office secretary for International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) Local Lodge 1484 (located in Wilmington, Calif.), pleaded guilty to one count of false statements in records required to be maintained by a labor union, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 439(c).

Union officials have a lot of explaining to do to their members.
Categories: Labor Racket WeeklyUFCW