embezzlement charges

Office of Labor-Management Enforcement

The Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) conducts both civil and criminal investigations of alleged violations of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) and related laws.

These investigations by OLMS District Offices involve issues such as embezzlements of union funds, union officer elections, the filing of required reports by unions and others with OLMS, and the imposition of trusteeships over subordinate unions by a parent body. These investigations may result in legal enforcement actions.

Date	Description
August 5th, 2013	On August 5, 2013, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, Harold Washington, former President of National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) Chapter 105 (located in Chula Vista, Calif.), was sentenced to one year of probation and was ordered to pay a $100 fine. On April 24, 2013, Washington pled guilty to embezzling over $38,000 and falsifying LM financial reports, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1001. Washington previously paid full restitution. The sentencing follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office, Homeland Security Office of Professional Responsibility, and United States Customs and Border Protection.
January 9th, 2013	On January 9, 2013, in the United States District Court for the District of Utah, Northern Division, Shelia S. Brown, former Treasurer of National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) Chapter 67 (located in Ogden, Utah), was charged in a two-count indictment for embezzling $20,705.21 in union funds, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 666(a)(1)(A), theft from a program receiving federal funds. The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver District Office.
October 1st, 2012	On October 1, 2012, Rebecca Mercer, former Secretary-Treasurer of National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) Chapter 284 in Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to one year and one day of imprisonment, three years of probation, and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $50,822. In June 2011, Mercer pled guilty to one count of wire fraud. The investigation revealed that between July 2006 and June 2008, Mercer embezzled more than $50,000 in union funds through unauthorized debit card transactions and ATM withdrawals.
September 10th, 2002	On September 10, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona, Gregory B. Floto, former president of the National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 116, was sentenced to six months of home detention, three years of probation, fined $2,000, ordered to pay a $100 special assessment, and ordered to pay $7,714.68 in remaining restitution to the union (or bonding company). On March 15, 2002, Floto pled guilty to making a false statement to a federal agent to conceal his embezzlement of $15,714.21 in union funds after being charged in a seven-count indictment. This case was prosecuted by attorneys from the Public Integrity Section of the U.S. Department of Justice, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office and U.S. Customs Internal Affairs Tucson office.