2003 U.S. DOL Criminal Enforcement Actions
On December 30, 2003, in the United States District Court for the District of Montana, Michael LaForge, former president of the National Federation of Federal Employees Local 224, was sentenced to six months in a pre-release center and four years probation for embezzlement/theft of government property totaling $14,622, fraud, and false statements. He was ordered to make restitution in the amount of $15,647.67 and to pay a fine in the amount of $200. On October 9, 2003, LaForge pled guilty to embezzlement/theft of government property after cashing union dues rebate checks totaling $14,622, and to fraud and false statements. The guilty plea and sentence follow an investigation by the OLMS Denver District Office.
On December 22, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Alan L. Spates, former president of PACE Local 5-1250, was charged with embezzling $29,746.28 in union funds and filing a false LM report. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office. [
On December 20, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Charles D. Davis, former secretary-treasurer of Locomotive Engineers Division 239, was charged with embezzling $11,799.20 in union funds, filing a false report, and making false entries in union records. The charges follow an investigation by the OLMS Nashville District Office.
On December 16, 2003, in the District Court for Chenango County (New York), Patricia Fletcher, former treasurer of Machinists Local Lodge 1278, was sentenced to three years probation and ordered to make restitution of $3,300 for third degree grand larceny. Fletcher pled guilty to the charge on October 14, 2003. The guilty plea and sentence follow an investigation by the OLMS Buffalo District Office.
On December 16, 2003, in the United States District Court for District of North Dakota, William Lane, former president of Machinists Lodge 2525, plead guilty to one count of embezzlement of $13,500 in union funds, one count of bank fraud, and one count of destruction of records. Lane was indicted on these three counts February 11, 2003. The charges were brought following an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.
On December 15, 2003, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, Robert Santoro, a contractor, was sentenced to seven years in prison for money laundering. Santoro converted checks from the fraudulent funds derived from the 2 Broadway project. On one specific occasion, he cashed a check of illegal proceeds from the 2 Broadway project for approximately $800,000 and gave the cash to another individual indicted in this case. This investigation was part of an ongoing investigation involving the Elevator Constructors Local One operator no-show job scheme. The sentence follows a joint investigation by the OLMS New York District Office, the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration, the FBI, and the IRS.