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Service Employees, Local 721 - Licensed Practical Nurses, Technici

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.

DateDescription
December 6th, 2013On December 6, 2013, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Cedric Earl Hughes, former Staff Union Treasurer of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 721, United Union Professionals (located in Los Angeles, Calif.), was indicted on five counts of wire fraud and one count embezzlement of union funds, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343 and 29 U.S.C. 501(c), respectively. Hughes, who served in his position from March 2009 through June 2010, wrote unauthorized checks to himself and made unauthorized cash withdrawals and debit card transactions with the union’s debit card totaling $15,194. The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.