Indicted former Carpenters union official expected to change his not guilty plea
by POLITICO’s Matt Friedman:
George Laufenberg, the former benefits funds manager for the United Brotherhood of Carpenters union in New Jersey and New York who is charged for more than $1.5 million in fraud, is expected to change his plea from not guilty after negotiations with federal prosecutors. U.S. District Court Judge Kevin McNulty has scheduled a change of plea hearing for 10 a.m. Friday in his chambers at the federal courthouse in Newark. There are two possible federal pleas other than not guilty: Guilty or no contest. It’s not clear if Laufenberg’s change of plea has anything to do with a wider federal investigation of the Carpenters union that was sparked by allegations of “self-dealing and corruption” contained in a whistleblower lawsuit. John Ballantyne, the former executive secretary-treasurer of the Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters, alleged the United Brotherhood of Carpenters dissolved his local council in May 2018 to get rid of him and his subordinates for, he alleged, uncovering malfeasance that had the blessing of some of the international union’s top leaders. Among Ballantyne’s allegations was that union leaders sought to protect Laufenberg and “expressed anger about the termination of their good friend” when Ballantyne advised trustees to fire him. Ballantyne and the union settled the lawsuit months after he filed it. The settlement terms were not disclosed, but the lawsuit appears to have sparked the federal criminal investigation.
HEY FRANKIE "THE CHIMP" SPENCER. YOU SLEEP TIGHT
HEY FRANKIE YOU POS.CINCH UP YOUR LOINS. PEOPLE ARE ASKING WHY UBC FUNDS ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE GIVING MILLIONS TO THE NJ TURNPIKE AUTHORITY