2019-01-28 DOJ SDNY press_release 117 KB 4,346 chars

Former President Of Labor Union Sentenced For Embezzlement, False Filings, And Kickback Schemes

Caption: United States v. Acclaim Administrators, Inc., et al.

summary

Rocco Fazzolari, former president of a labor union and trustee of its employee benefit plan, was sentenced to 37 months in prison for embezzling over $1.3 million through personal expense fraud and a kickback scheme involving fake payments to a vendor who returned funds to him, resulting in forfeiture, restitution, and a 13-year ban from union-related employment.

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Rocco Fazzolari was sentenced to 37 months in prison for embezzling more than $1.3 million from his labor union and its employee welfare benefit plan. He used union funds to pay for personal expenses—including spa treatments, a second car, and medical bills—and fraudulently 'reimbursed' the union with $89,000 from the benefit plan, which was intended for members’ healthcare. Additionally, he orchestrated a kickback scheme with Acclaim Administrators, funneling over $1.1 million in fake service payments to a co-conspirator who returned most of the money to him, while also filing false reports with the Department of Labor to conceal the fraud.

narrative

Rocco Fazzolari, former president of a labor union and trustee of its employee welfare benefit plan, was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison for a multi-year scheme of embezzlement, false filings, and kickbacks totaling over $1.3 million. From 2012 to 2016, he used union funds to pay for personal expenses such as spa treatments, a gym membership, a second car, medical bills, credit card charges, and ATM withdrawals, then 'reimbursed' the union with $89,000 stolen from the employee benefit plan—money meant to provide healthcare to union members. From 2000 to 2016, he colluded with co-conspirator CC-1 to funnel over $1.1 million in fraudulent payments from the plan to Acclaim Administrators, a company that provided no legitimate services, with the majority of those funds returned to Fazzolari. To conceal these crimes, he filed false reports with the U.S. Department of Labor. Fazzolari pled guilty to embezzlement, false filings, and conspiracy, and was ordered to forfeit $941,828, pay $1,288,810.75 in restitution, serve three years of supervised release, and accept a 13-year ban from employment with any labor union or employee benefit plan under 29 U.S.C. §§ 504 and 1111. The case was investigated by the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, the FBI, and the DOJ’s Labor-Management Racketeering Unit.

Enriched metadata

Scheme: affinity-fraud (95%)
Court: Southern District of New York
Outcome: pleaded
Restitution: $1,288,811
Victim loss: $1,300,000

Classified affinity-fraud(confidence 95%). EDGAR detection: forms Form D· recall 58% / precision 2%. detection rule →

Extracted insights

Dollar amounts 7

$1.30M $1.3 million $1M–$10M
$1.29M $1,288,810 $1M–$10M
$1.10M $1.1 million $1M–$10M
$1.00M $1 million $1M–$10M
$942K $941,828 $100K–$1M
$128K $128,000 $100K–$1M
$89K $89,000 $10K–$100K

Entities 5

company acclaim administrators, inc.
scheme_term embezzlement, false filings, and kickback schemes
person Geoffrey S. Berman
person judge analisa torres
person rocco fazzolari

Triples 15

Rocco Fazzolari sentenced to 37 months in prison
Rocco Fazzolari embezzled from Union and Plan
Rocco Fazzolari obtained illegally $1.3 million
Rocco Fazzolari pled guilty to embezzlement, false filings, and kickback schemes
Rocco Fazzolari served as president of labor union
Rocco Fazzolari embezzled from Union $128,000 over approximately four years
Rocco Fazzolari improperly transferred from Plan $89,000
Rocco Fazzolari engaged in kickback scheme with CC-1 from 2000 through June 2016
Rocco Fazzolari paid to Acclaim Administrators, Inc. $1.1 million
Rocco Fazzolari ordered to forfeit $941,828
Rocco Fazzolari ordered to pay restitution $1,288,810.75
Rocco Fazzolari agreed to ban from labor union or employee benefit plan employment for 13 years
Judge Analisa Torres imposed sentence on Rocco Fazzolari
Geoffrey S. Berman announced sentencing of Rocco Fazzolari
Acclaim Administrators, Inc. received payments from Plan $1.1 million

View original DOJ press releasejustice.gov

Extracted body text (4,346c)

Press Release Former President Of Labor Union Sentenced For Embezzlement, False Filings, And Kickback Schemes Monday, January 28, 2019 Share FacebookLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. XLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. LinkedInLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. Email For Immediate Release U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that ROCCO FAZZOLARI, who previously served as the president of a labor union (the “Union”) and a trustee of the Union’s employee welfare benefit plan (the “Plan”), was sentenced today to 37 months in prison for embezzling from the Union and the Plan, concealing this embezzlement through false filings with the U.S. Department of Labor, and for participating in a kickback scheme. Through these embezzlement and kickback schemes, FAZZOLARI and a co-conspirator illegally obtained a total of more than $1.3 million from the Union and the Plan. FAZZOLARI previously pled guilty before United States District Judge Analisa Torres, who imposed today’s sentence. U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “Rocco Fazzolari abused his position as the president of a labor union, taking more than $1 million through embezzlement and kickback schemes. Most of this money was taken from an employee benefit plan, which was established to provide medical care for union members. For his crimes, he is now headed to federal prison.” According to the allegations in the Information to which FAZZOLARI pled guilty, public court filings, and statements made in court: From at least in or about 2012 through in or about June 2016, FAZZOLARI repeatedly used Union funds to pay for his personal expenses, including payments for spa treatments, a gym membership, a second car, medical expenses, dues for an actors’ union, personal credit card charges, and ATM cash withdrawals. FAZZOLARI then “reimbursed” the Union with funds from the Plan. The Plan was established to provide, among other things, medical, surgical, and hospital care or benefits to Union members. In total, FAZZOLARI embezzled more than $128,000 from the Union over approximately four years, and improperly transferred more than $89,000 from the Plan to “reimburse” the Union. In addition, from at least in or about 2000 through in or about June 2016, FAZZOLARI engaged in a kickback scheme with another individual (“CC-1”). Using Plan funds, FAZZOLARI paid CC-1’s company, Acclaim Administrators, Inc. (“Acclaim”), more than $1.1 million for purported services, even though Acclaim did not actually provide the Plan with these services. CC-1 then kicked back the vast majority of these payments to FAZZOLARI. * * * In addition to his prison term, ROCCO FAZZOLARI, 58, of Manhasset Hills, New York, was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release, to forfeit $941,828, and to pay restitution of $1,288,810.75. Under the terms of his plea agreement, FAZZOLARI has agreed to a 13-year ban, pursuant to 29 U.S.C. §§ 504 and 1111, which generally prohibits him from, among other things, being employed by a labor union or employee benefit plan. Mr. Berman praised the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, Employee Benefits Security Administration, Office of Chief Accountant, and Office of Labor-Management Standards for their outstanding investigative work. Mr. Berman also thanked the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Justice’s Labor-Management Racketeering Unit of the Organized Crime and Gang Section for their assistance in this case. This matter is being handled by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant United States Attorney Michael D. Neff is in charge of the prosecution. Updated January 28, 2019 Topics Financial Fraud Labor & Employment Component USAO - New York, Southern Press Release Number: 19-015

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