A Contractor Who Paid Of f McLaughlin Over Violations Takes Plea

A former electrical company owner pleaded guilty July 31 to charges that he made tens of thousands of dollars in illegal payments to disgraced labor leader Brian McLaughlin, who at the time was a business rep for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 3.

Santo Petrocelli, who owned the Petrocelli Electric Company, admitted to paying Mr. McLaughlin to overlook Labor Law violations and providing him the use of a company car. The Local 3 members employed by the company did work involving street lights and traffic signals.

Faces 5 Years

Mr. Petrocelli faces up to five years in prison. The plea agreement maintains there will be no prosecution against the company.

A statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan said that decision was made in part because Mr. Petrocelli "left [the company] in 2006, [and] has not been involved in [its] business operations since that time, and will have no future role in the operation of [the company]."

Mr. McLaughlin, the former head of the AFL-CIO New York City Central Labor Council, was sentenced to 10 years in Federal prison for stealing $3 million in his capacities as a union official and a state Assemblyman.

A.P.