The former president of a union representing officers of the federal company tasked with screening airport vacationers has pleaded responsible to defrauding her union.
Marie LeClair, 59, of Lynn — previously the president of the American Federation of Government Employees, Transportation Security Administration, Local 2617, primarily based in Boston — pleaded responsible Wednesday in federal courtroom in Boston to at least one depend of wire fraud.
“She betrayed the trust of the membership and of the union. I’m happy to see that justice was served,” Michael Gayzagian, the present president of Local 2617, informed the Herald. “It’s unfortunate the organization had to go through what we had to go through, but at the end of the day I hope it’s a lesson to folks who think they can get away with that type of activity. Just don’t steal.”
The feds busted LeClair on wiring $3,000 from union coffers to a journey debit card in her personal identify for use as she personally noticed match on or round May 22, 2018, however courtroom data present that the scheme to defraud started as early as March 2015, quickly after she took the reigns of the native on Feb. 28, 2015.
Gayzagian stated that the union itself was the primary to analyze LeClair. The union is closely regulated and has to adjust to common audits of its books, however LeClair refused to open the books.
“The board had been requesting audits and the audits had not been done,” Gayzagian summarized.
Gayzagian, as then-executive vp, reported her to the nationwide board, which started an investigation.
On Dec. 28, 2018, the union’s nationwide president, J. David Cox Sr., suspended LeClair of her place within the union and knowledgeable her that the union had alerted the federal authorities of what they’d discovered, based on a letter obtained by the Herald. She was federally charged on April 26, 2022.
The letter alleged that LeClair was making “unapproved cash withdrawals and purchases on a nearly daily basis” on a union bank card, and even paid her private telephone payments with union cash.
LeClair faces a most of 20 years in jail, based on a May 31 plea settlement filed with the courtroom. The settlement additionally agrees to dwelling confinement from three months to a 12 months. District Court Judge Indira Talwani has scheduled sentencing for Aug. 16.
“The union did its job,” Gayzagian informed the Herald. “The process worked.”
Source: www.bostonherald.com”