Why Did Crooked Carpenter Big Shot Brian Hayes Plead Guilty

On August 13, prosecutors asked a judge to let them introduce new evidence of the "considerable drinking" by carpenters Local 608 business agent Brian Hayes as part of the corruption case against him.

The Manhattan federal-court filing (see below) says Hayes "cultivated his criminal relationship with other union officials and assorted contractors over drinks at Irish pubs throughout the city."

Cooperating witnesses were set to testify that "bribes were paid to Hayes and other corrupt union officials in the very same Irish pubs where Hayes would meet his co-conspirators to drink."

The daytime elbow-bending also put Hayes "on notice" that his union buddies "were themselves violating their fiduciary duties to monitor accurately the carpenters working on job sites," and were going to rat him out for pocketing cash payoffs.

The feds intended to introduce two audio recordings of a co-conspirator of Hayes who has since pleaded guilty to making cash bribes to Hayes on behalf of EMB and began cooperating with the Government.

Hayes continue to tell his co-conspirators that the "charges against him were false, and he would beat the the charges, and not to worry." 

In addition this co-conspirator was expected to testify at trial that Hayes accepted among other things, free decking material and labor from EMB to build his Manhattan bar, McGarry's, in exchange for letting EMB hire nonunion workers and pay employees at his work sites below minimum wage and off the books, and run a Bronx job without a union shop steward.

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Carpenters’ Union Agent Guilty Of Racketeering

A former business agent of the District Council of New York City and Vicinity of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners has pleaded guilty in Manhattan federal court to participating in a racketeering scheme and other offenses.

From approximately May 2004 until his arrest in August 2009, Brian Hayes was a District Council business agent appointed to Local 608.

Hayes was also an elected officer of Local 608 and, prior to being appointed a business agent, he was a longtime shop steward with Local 608. In these capacities, Hayes owed the District Council, Local 608, and their members a fiduciary duty of loyalty and honest services.

In pleading guilty, Hayes admitted to participating in the affairs of the Carpenters Union through a pattern of racketeering activity, to taking a cash bribe payment from at least one contractor, and to obstructing and giving false testimony in a civil case brought by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York to address a history of union corruption and organized crime influence within the District Council.

Hayes pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of racketeering, which also carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

He is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero on Dec. 3.

Hayes is the ninth of 10 defendants in the case to plead guilty. Trial as to the remaining defendant, Joseph Olivieri is scheduled to begin on Oct. 18 before Judge Marrero.

Finally: Crooked carpenters union official Brian Hayes pleads guilty to racketeering

Brian Hayes

 BRUCE GOLDING

A corrupt carpenter who liked getting hammered copped a plea to racketeering charges this afternoon after learning his drinking buddies ratted him out for pocketing payoffs in Irish pubs.

Brian Hayes became the last of eight crooked officials from the carpenters union to plead guilty in a case that brought down once-powerful labor leader Michael Forde.

Hayes admitted taking an envelope stuffed with more than $1,000 in cash to let a contractor, Turbo Construction, violate terms of its labor agreement in December 2004.

Hayes, a former business agent for Local 608, said he passed along the payoff to another crooked union official, who a source identified as John Greaney.

Greaney, former president of Local 608, pleaded guilty last month as part of a cooperation deal with the feds.

During his appearance in Manhattan federal court, Hayes also admitted lying under oath at a deposition in a court-ordered inquiry into corruption at the carpenters union.

Last week, prosecutors revealed that cooperating witnesses were set to testify that Hayes, a 39-year-old Irish immigrant, "cultivated his criminal relationship with other union officials and assorted contractors over drinks at Irish pubs throughout the city."

Under terms of his non-binding plea agreement, Hayes faces 30 to 37 months in the slammer when he's sentenced on Dec. 3.

He also agreed to forfeit $30,000 in ill-gotten gains from the racketeering scheme, which let contractors hire illegal aliens off the books and avoid required contributions to the union's benefit funds.

His guilty plea leaves charges pending against only one remaining defendant in the case, reputed Genovese crime family associate Joseph Olivieri, the longtime head of the Association of Wall-Ceiling and Carpentry Industries.

Carpenters Union Big is Hammered

By BRUCE GOLDING

An indicted union official's taste for booze could prove his undoing.

Brian Hayes, John Daly, John Greaney pictured with former president Bill Clinton

Prosecutors yesterday asked a judge to let them introduce evidence of the "considerable drinking" by carpenters Local 608 business agent Brian Hayes as part of the corruption case against him.

The Manhattan federal-court filing says Hayes "cultivated his criminal relationship with other union officials and assorted contractors over drinks at Irish pubs throughout the city."

Cooperating witnesses are set to testify that "bribes were paid to Hayes and other corrupt union officials in the very same Irish pubs where Hayes would meet his co-conspirators to drink."

The daytime elbow-bending also put Hayes "on notice" that his union buddies "were themselves violating their fiduciary duties to monitor accurately the carpenters working on job sites," the feds allege.

A lawyer for Hayes -- who's charged with taking payoffs to let contractors hire illegal aliens off the books -- didn't respond to requests for comment.

Also yesterday, former carpenters shop steward Brian Carson was ordered to serve 19 months in the slammer.

The case also toppled powerful labor leader Michael Forde, who pleaded guilty last month.

(John's note. My prediction: expect another round of forced retirements and resignations.)

Carpenters Union Big Brian Hayes Named In Bar Scam

BY Kerry Burke and Alison Gendar

A union official is accused of selling out his own members - getting a corrupt contractor to build his Manhattan bar by letting him hire nonunion workers on other jobs.

Brian Hayes, a business agent for Local 608 of the carpenters union, allegedly took thousands in cash, free labor and materials to build McGarry's on Ninth Ave. in Manhattan, prosecutors and union sources said.

In exchange, Hayes let the contractor pay employees at his work sites below minimum wage and off the books, and run a Bronx job without a union shop steward, officials charged.

"He's a hardworking guy who's been unjustly accused," said Hayes' lawyer James Froccaro, who declined to elaborate.

A state liquor license lists Hayes as the vice president of a bar at the address of McGarry's. Workers at the popular Irish pub declined to comment.

Hayes is one of nine union big shots, including carpenters union boss Michael Forde, indicted last summer on bribery and racketeering charges.

Forde was convicted in 2004 of taking bribes from a man linked to the DeCavalcante crime family, the mobsters that inspired "The Sopranos."

The verdict was tossed when a judge discovered that some jurors had read news accounts of the case, and Forde was acquitted on retrial.

Manhattan DA Demolishes $1 Million Construction Scheme: Contracting Company Caught Allegedly Defrauding Employees Pay

The Manhattan District Attorney announced the arrest and indictment earlier today of Michael Batalias, Elisavet Batalias, Vassiliki Stergiou and EMB Contracting Corporation for defrauding employees in the neighborhood of $1 million dollars. The defendants are charged with Grand Larceny in the First Degree and Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree. Moreover, Elisavet Batalias was charged with eleven counts of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree.
According to the Manhattan District Attorney's Office:

EMB Contracting Corp is a "general contractor providing labor in the rehabilitation/construction of 30 public schools throughout New York City. As provided by the New York State Labor Law, and under the terms of these contracts, EMB was required to pay all of the employees engaged in working on these contracts the prevailing wage and supplemental benefit rate. The Office of the Inspector General for the SCA began investigating EMB after receiving a number of complaints that the firm was not paying employees the required prevailing wage rate, but rather roughly a third to a half of the rate, and was not making appropriate contributions to the union pension fund."

Prosecutors allege the the contractors were not merely "cooking" the books, but also created a new set of "dummy" records as well. All of this, according to the Manhattan DA, was to hide underpayments. Additionally, EMB falsified payroll reports and completely omitted workers from records while adding those who did not actually work. In fact, when it came time to submit the payment applications, it is alleged that Elisavet Batalia provided sworn affidavits that the prevailing was was paid to employees when it had not. Vicky Stergiou also is alleged to have given cash "off the books" to employees by cashing EMB checks made payable to other people. The alleged fraud perpetrated by the defendants took another step towards criminality when Michael Batalias allegedly staged a accident at a different location after an employee was hurt elsewhere.

While I am certainly not privy to the facts of the case beyond the press release, the defendant's certainly have a difficult road ahead. The police executed a search warrant in 2008 and likely have subpoenaed bank and payroll records. Moreover, it appears that there are numerous employees, ie, witnesses, who could testify as to how they were paid, hours worked and conduct of the EMB. That being said, although it is not an affirmative defense as it is in the context of Falsifying Business Records, did any of the defendants offer the false instrument at the behest of a supervisor and without any personal benefit? Did each individual indicted by the Grand Jury have the intent to perpetrate these crimes? Are there documents supporting each of the defendants' involvements or is the indictment based on the general roles of the defendants at EMB? Whatever the defense may be, the defendants should implement it immediately.

Grand Larceny in the First Degree is a class B felony punishable by up to 8⅓ to 25 years in prison. Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree and Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree are class E felonies punishable by up to 1⅓ to 4 years in prison.

Crotty Saland, LLP is a white collar criminal defense firm located in New York City. Founded by two former Manhattan prosecutors, Crotty Saland, LLP has successfully represented clients in white collar criminal matters ranging from multiple million dollar Criminal Tax Fraud cases to crimes involving Forged Instruments, Identity Theft and Grand Larceny in the tens of thousands of dollars.

EMB CONTRACTING CORP. (EMB)

DISTRICT ATTORNEY - NEW YORK COUNTY
NEWS RELEASE November 12, 2009	Contact: Alicia Maxey Greene 212-335-9400
Manhattan District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau announced today the indictment of a Queens-based general contracting firm, EMB CONTRACTING CORP., and its principals for defrauding employees out of more than $1 million in unpaid wages and benefits.  The defendants, EMB CONTRACTING CORP. (EMB), and its former and current de facto president MICHAEL BATALIAS, 65, were indicted on charges of grand larceny and scheme to defraud. Also named in today’s indictment are EMB’s President ELISAVET BATALIAS, 35, who was indicted on charges of scheme to defraud and offering a false instrument for filing, and VASILIKI (a/k/a VICKY) STERGIOU, 44, the office manager, who was indicted on charges of scheme to defraud. The crimes charged in the indictment occurred between April 1, 2007 and December 28, 2008. The investigation leading to today’s indictment revealed that EMB is a general contracting firm that specializes in large public works contracts.  The criminal conduct outlined in this indictment involves contracts entered into with the New York City School Construction Authority (SCA) whereby EMB was the general contractor providing labor in the rehabilitation/construction of 30 public schools throughout New York City.  As provided by the New York State Labor Law, and under the terms of these contracts, EMB was required to pay all of the employees engaged in working on these contracts the prevailing wage and supplemental benefit rate. The Office of the Inspector General for the SCA began investigating EMB after receiving a number of complaints that the firm was not paying employees the required prevailing wage rate, but rather roughly a third to a half of the rate, and was not making appropriate contributions to the union pension fund. The initial investigation provided the District Attorney's Office with probable cause to obtain and execute a search warrant at EMB’s offices in December of 2008.  The defendants took a number of criminal steps to hide these underpayments from the SCA.  These included creating falsified payroll reports which had no bearing on the real hours worked by the workers.  Sometimes workers who worked were totally omitted, and sometimes workers who did not work were included.  In fact, EMB paid workers by eight hour segments.  Thus if a worker worked 48 hours he got 6 times his daily pay, which ranged from $130 to $240, paid in cash and check combinations.  These amounts were well below the prevailing wage, which during the period charge ranged from about $384 to $408 for 8 hours. Additionally no overtime was paid.  Nonetheless, the payment applications included sworn affidavits by ELISAVET BATALIAS attesting that EMB was paying the required prevailing wages and benefits. STERGIOU administered the cash payroll system and generated cash to give workers “off the books” by cashing EMB checks made out to third persons. Further investigation revealed that on December 17, 2006, MICHAEL BATALIAS and EMB, in order to avoid detection of the underpayment, removed a worker who was injured on a school project in Fresh Meadows, Queens to EMB’s warehouse in Astoria, Queens and staged the scene so that it would appear as if the accident occurred at the warehouse.   Defendants, EMB CONTRACTING INC., and MICHAEL BATALIAS have been indicted on one count each of Grand Larceny in the First Degree and Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree. ELISAVET BATALIAS and VICKY STERGIOU have been indicted on one count each of Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree. ELISAVET BATALIAS was additionally indicted on 11 counts of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree. MICHAEL BATALIAS AND EMB are charged in the same indictment with a second count of Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree for that conduct.    Grand Larceny in the First Degree is a class B felony punishable by up to 8⅓ to 25 years in prison. Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree and Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree are class E felonies punishable by up to 1⅓ to 4 years in prison. The defendants were arrested this morning and are scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon in State Supreme Court, Part 1.  Mr. Morgenthau thanked Barbara DiTata, Inspector General of the SCA, for the assistance of her investigative staff, including Gerard McEnroe, Investigative Counsel, and Investigators James O’Brien, Leroy Callier, and Nick Scicutella.  Mr. Morgenthau also thanked the New York State Insurance Fund Acting Director Francine James and the Division of Confidential Investigation Director Laurence LaPointe.  Assistant District Attorneys Thomas Mooney and Elizabeth Lederer, Senior Investigative Counsel in the Labor Racketeering Unit, are handling the prosecution under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Michael Scotto, Chief of the Labor Racketeering Unit.  Rackets Investigators Stuart Prakin and Robert Tarwacki assisted with the investigation under the supervision of Senior Rackets Investigator Terry Quinn and Chief Investigator Joseph Pennisi.  Deputy Chief Financial Investigator Michael Kelly also participated in the investigation. Defendants' Information: MICHAEL BATALIAS, 4/25/1944 80 Stone Hill Drive East Manhasset, New York ELISAVET BATALIAS, 12/28/1973 80 Stone Hill Drive East Manhasset, New York VASSILIKI STERGIOU (a/k/a VICKY STERGIOU), 11/7/1964 1701 Tower Drive Edgewater, New York EMB CONTRACTING CORP. 24-59 47th Street Astoria, New York