Ex-Chief Inspector Of Cranes for City Gets Hit With Bribery Rap

In a new embarrassment to an embattled agency, the former Acting Chief Inspector for Cranes and Derricks in the Department of Buildings was indicted in Manhattan Oct. 7 on charges of accepting bribes from a Suffolk County crane company.

JAMES DELAYO: Bribes for non-inspections?

James Delayo was arrested on June 6 and later admitted to accepting $10,000 in bribes from Michael Sackaris of Nu-Way Crane Services between 2002 and 2007, but the Manhattan District Attorney's Office alleges that the payments date back to 1996.

Say He Falsified Reports

The DA accused Mr. Delayo of receiving individual payments between $200 and $500 for falsifying inspection reports and ensuring that Nu-Way workers passed examinations for crane operator licenses.

"The investigation also revealed that Delayo received approximately $3,000 on at least two occasions to provide Sackaris and Nu-Way with advance copies of a written crane licensing exam administered by the DOB," according to a statement from the DA's Office.

Mr. Delayo was charged with one count of receiving bribes in the second degree, 37 counts of tampering with public records in the first degree, 37 counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree and 37 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. If convicted on all charges, he could face up to 30 years in prison.

Mr. Sackaris and another Nu-Way worker, Michael Pascalli, also face similar charges. Mr. Pascalli received a passing grade on an exam that he never took as a result of a bribe to Mr. Delayo, the DA's Office alleged.

Mr. Delayo's next court date is Oct. 23.