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Union Facts

Novelty & Production Workers

criminal 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
May 1st, 2013On May 1, 2013, Stephen P. Arena, former President of Novelty and Production Workers Local 148 in Jersey City, New Jersey, was sentenced to six months in jail and six months home confinement for embezzlement of union funds. Arena has made full restitution of $193,000 to the union, but was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine to the court. In May 2012, Arena pled guilty to a one-count indictment charging him with embezzlement of labor union funds. Arena conspired with the union’s secretary-treasurer/recording secretary, David Caivano, to steal money from the union by taking unauthorized salary increases and bonuses. This investigation was conducted jointly with the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
May 31st, 2012On May 31, 2012, in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Stephen Arena, former President of Novelty Workers Local 148 (located in Jersey City, N.J.), pled guilty to a one-count indictment charging him with embezzlement in the amount of $193,000, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The plea follows an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office.
September 21st, 2010On September 21, 2010, in the United States District Court of New Jersey, Stephen P. Arena and David Caivano, President and Recording Secretary/Secretary-Treasurer, respectively, of Novelty and Production Workers Local 148 (located in Newark, N.J.), were indicted on 29 counts of conspiracy and embezzlement of approximately $375,000 in union funds. The charge follows an investigation by OLMS New York District Office and the Labor OIG.
March 15th, 2002On March 15, 2002, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, John Serpico, former president of the Central States Joint Board of the Novelty and Production Workers (and a former vice president of the Laborers International Union) was sentenced to 30 months imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release on each of the six mail fraud counts of which he was convicted on July 16, 2001, with the sentences to run concurrently. He was also fined $100,000; ordered to make restitution of $30,000; and ordered to pay the cost of imprisonment. Maria Busillo, also a former president of the Central States Joint Board, was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment followed by three years supervised release on each of two mail fraud counts and one count of making a false statement on a loan application of which she had been convicted, with the sentences to run concurrently. She was also fined $100,000 and ordered to pay the cost of imprisonment. Gilbert Cataldo was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment followed by three years supervised release on each of three mail fraud counts of which he had been convicted, with the sentences to run concurrently. He was also fined $5,000 and ordered to perform 250 hours of community service. The charges had been brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office, the FBI, the IRS, and the Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General.
July 16th, 2001On July 16, 2001, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, John Serpico, former president of the Central States Joint Board of the Novelty and Production Workers (and a former vice president of the Laborers International Union), was convicted of mail fraud for, among other things, using his influence over union funds to obtain millions of dollars in personal loans from banks and receiving a kickback in return for arranging a union loan for a hotel project. Maria Busillo, also a former president of the Central States Joint Board, was convicted of mail fraud and making false statements to a bank and Gilbert Cataldo was convicted of mail fraud. The charges were brought following a joint investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office, the FBI, the IRS, and the Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General.