New Bedford Police Union Boss Joshua Fernandes Pleads Guilty
Joshua Fernandes was charged with wire fraud of union funds back in July of 2021. Now, he has pleaded guilty to the act. You can read more about the original charge here.
From the Department of Labor:
On October 13, 2021, in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, Joshua Fernandes, former Treasurer of the New Bedford Police Union (located in New Bedford, Mass.), pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud of union funds totaling $48,631, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Joshua Fernandes is yet another example of union bosses pleading guilty to corruption. The funds allegedly stolen came from the union’s coffers. That’s money that was involuntarily collected from hard workers forced to be part of the union. These workers didn’t have a choice but to give up part of their paychecks, but were promised it would go toward good things. Instead, like so many other times, it ended up in the pockets of corrupt union bosses.
To read more on this case, please visit the DOL site here.
To stay up to date on Criminal Union Corruption, check out our 2021 U.S. DOL Criminal LMRDA Enforcement Actions page here.