Trenton Mayor Sentenced to 58 Months in Prison on Federal Extortion, Bribery, and Mail and Wire Fraud Charges

TRENTON, NJ—Trenton Mayor Tony F. Mack was sentenced today to 58 months in prison after being convicted at trial in February on all six federal extortion, bribery, and mail and wire fraud charges against him, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Mack’s brother, Ralphiel Mack, who was also convicted on three of the charges but found not guilty on three mail fraud and wire fraud counts, was sentenced to 30 months in prison. The Macks had been convicted following a five-week trial before U.S. District Judge Michael A. Shipp, who imposed the sentences today in Trenton federal court.

The Macks were charged in connection with a scheme to accept $119,000 in bribes in exchange for Mayor Mack’s official actions and influence in assisting cooperating witnesses in the development of an automated parking garage on city-owned land.

“Nearly four years ago, Tony Mack raised his hand and swore to uphold the state and federal constitutions as he assumed the office of mayor of the capital city of New Jersey,” U.S. Attorney Fishman said. “Within 10 weeks, he began selling that office and, with the help of his brother and others, he sold out the people of Trenton in the process. Today, he learned the true cost of his actions: He will spend 58 months in federal prison.”

“Instead of providing transparent government to the citizens of Trenton, Tony Mack and his brother allowed themselves to succumb to self-interest and greed,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford said. “This investigation brought to light the unsavory underworld of secret meetings with convicted felons, the calculated use of ‘buffers’ and bagmen, and bribe payments associated with inside deals to give away the city’s treasures, its property. The citizens of Trenton are entitled to political figures who discharge their duties with goodness of heart and not those motivated by personal gain.”

Tony F. Mack, 48, and Ralphiel Mack, 41, both of Trenton, originally were charged by complaint on September 10, 2012, with one count of conspiracy to obstruct commerce by extortion under color of official right related to the $119,000 extortion scheme. Also charged at that time was Joseph A. Giorgianni, 64, of Ewing, New Jersey. An indictment returned in December 2012 added charges against all three defendants.

Giorgianni pleaded guilty on December 13, 2013, to one count of conspiring with the Macks and others to obstruct interstate commerce by extorting individuals under color of official right, in addition to a separate extortion scheme, a narcotics charge and illegal weapons possession, all charges unrelated to the Macks.

Mayor Mack was convicted of the six counts charged in the indictment:

• Conspiracy to obstruct and affect interstate commerce by extortion under color of official right
• Attempted obstruction of commerce by extortion under the color of official right
• Accepting and agreeing to accept bribes
• Two counts of wire fraud
• Mail fraud

Ralphiel Mack was convicted on the same first three counts and found not guilty of the mail and wire fraud charges. The jury members deliberated for seven hours before returning their verdicts.

According to documents filed in this case and the evidence presented at trial:

Tony Mack, Giorgianni, and Ralphiel Mack conspired to accept approximately $119,000 in cash and other valuables, of which $54,000 was accepted and another $65,000 that the defendants planned to accept from two cooperating witnesses (CW-1 and CW-2). In exchange for the payments, Tony Mack agreed to and did assist CW-1 and CW-2 in their efforts to acquire a city-owned lot (East State Street Lot) to develop an automated parking garage (the Parking Garage Project). The scheme included a plan to divert $100,000 of the purchase amount that CW-2 had indicated a willingness to pay to the city of Trenton for the lot as a bribe and kickback payment to Giorgianni and Tony Mack. The mayor authorized and directed a Trenton official responsible for disposition of city-owned land to offer the East State Street Lot to CW-2 for $100,000, significantly less than the amount originally proposed by CW-2.

The defendants went to great lengths to conceal their corrupt activity to keep Tony Mack “safe” from law enforcement. For example, Giorgianni and Ralphiel Mack acted as intermediaries, or “buffers,” who accepted cash payments for Tony Mack’s benefit. Tony Mack also used another city of Trenton employee involved in the scheme, Charles Hall, III, 49, of Trenton, to contact other Trenton officials to facilitate the Parking Garage Project and to inform the mayor when Giorgianni had received corrupt cash payments. Hall pleaded guilty before Judge Shipp in February 2013 to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to obstruct commerce by extortion under color of official right and one count of conspiring to distribute narcotics with others, including Giorgianni.

To conceal the corrupt arrangement, the defendants avoided discussing matters related to the scheme over the telephone. When those matters were discussed, they used code words and aliases. One such code word was “Uncle Remus,” which both Giorgianni and Hall regularly used to communicate to Tony Mack that a corrupt payment had been received. For example, on October 29, 2011, Giorgianni telephoned Hall and informed him that Giorgianni had to “see” Tony Mack and that “I got Uncle Remus for him,” meaning a corrupt cash payment that Giorgianni had received from CW-1 two days earlier. Giorgianni directed Hall to bring Tony Mack to a meeting location controlled by Giorgianni (Giorgianni’s Clubhouse), stating “we gotta talk” because “I got something that might be good for him” and that “they’ve already come with Uncle Remus,” meaning a corrupt cash payment. On June 13, 2012, Giorgianni telephoned Tony Mack and informed him that “Uncle Remus,” meaning a corrupt cash payment, “was there.” Tony Mack replied, “I’ll call you, J. Okay?” In text messages to Tony Mack related to the scheme, Giorgianni would refer to himself as “Mr. Baker.”

The defendants also concealed their activities by holding meetings concerning the corrupt activity away from Trenton City Hall, including at Giorgianni’s residence, a restaurant maintained by Giorgianni known as JoJo’s Steakhouse, Giorgianni’s Clubhouse, and Atlantic City restaurants. At one Atlantic City meeting among Tony Mack, Giorgianni, Hall, and CW-2, Tony Mack instructed Giorgianni to ensure that no photographs were taken in order to conceal the corrupt arrangement.

In addition to the prison terms, Judge Shipp sentenced Tony Mack to three years of supervised release, 100 hours of community service, and fined him $3,000. He sentenced Ralphiel Mack to three years of supervised release and fined him $1,500.

U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI’s Trenton Resident Agency, Newark Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, for the investigation leading to today’s sentencings.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eric W. Moran and Matthew J. Skahill of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division in Trenton and Camden, respectively.

Charlotte Mayor Arrested on Federal Public Corruption Charges

CHARLOTTE, NC—Charlotte Mayor Patrick DeAngelo Cannon was arrested today by FBI agents for alleged violations of federal public corruption laws, announced Anne M. Tompkins, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. The federal criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court charges Cannon, 47, of Charlotte, with theft and bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds, honest services wire fraud, and extortion under color of official right.
John A. Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division, joins U.S. Attorney Tompkins in making today’s announcement.
According to allegations contained in the charging document and the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, during the course of a separate criminal investigation, the FBI received reliable information that Cannon was potentially involved in illegal activities associated with his position as an elected official and began an undercover investigation in or about August 2010. The complaint and affidavit allege that during the course of that investigation, Cannon allegedly solicited and accepted money bribes and things of value from undercover FBI agents, posing as commercial real estate developers and investors wishing to do business in Charlotte. As alleged in the filed documents, Cannon solicited and accepted such bribes and things of value in exchange for the use of his official position as Charlotte mayor, mayor pro tem, and/or as a city council member.
The complaint and law enforcement affidavit allege that Cannon accepted the bribes from the undercover FBI agents on five separate occasions. On the last occasion, on February 21, 2014, Cannon allegedly accepted $20,000 in cash in the mayor’s office. According to the complaint and the affidavit, between January 2013 and February 2014, Cannon allegedly accepted from the undercover agents more than $48,000 in cash, airline tickets, a hotel room, and use of a luxury apartment in exchange for the use of his official position.
Cannon had his initial appearance today and has been released on bond, pending indictment. The charge of theft and bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds carries a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine; the charge of honest services wire fraud carries a statutory maximum sentence of not more than 20 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine; and the charge of extortion under color of official right carries a statutory maximum sentence of not more than 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The charges contained in the criminal complaint are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael E. Savage of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina. The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

City of Sweetwater Mayor and Lobbyist Plead Guilty in Corruption Investigation

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Michael B. Steinbach, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Miami Field Office, announce that Manuel L. Maroño, 41, the former mayor of the city of Sweetwater, and Jorge L. Forte, 41, a lobbyist, both of Miami, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud for their participation in a scheme to personally benefit through the use of Maroño’s position as mayor of Sweetwater.
Sentencing has been scheduled for January 23, 2014, at 10:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge William J. Zloch. At sentencing, Maroño and Forte face a maximum statutory sentence of five years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer stated, “Today, the former mayor of Sweetwater admitted under oath in court that he sold the power granted to him by the people of Sweetwater. It is vitally important that the people of South Florida have confidence in their elected officials and know that any abuse of their trust will not be tolerated. I hope that today’s timely resolution and guilty plea will make others think twice before lining their pockets with the greed of corruption.”
“Corrupt officials—either elected or appointed—are on notice; if they breach the public’s trust through stealing or accepting bribes in the course of their official duties, they will be vigorously investigated,” said Michael B. Steinbach, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Miami. “Public corruption remains a top priority for the FBI. We encourage anyone who may have information about corruption to come forward and report it. This information is vital to our work.”
On October 17, 2013, Maroño and Forte were charged by way of information with one count of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. ' 371.
According to the facts admitted at today’s guilty plea and publically available information, Maroño was the elected mayor of the city of Sweetwater. In his elected position, Maroño served as the chief executive officer of the city of Sweetwater and was responsible for the management and administration of the city government. Forte, a lifelong friend of Maroño, was a lobbyist and business partner of Maroño.
Maroño and Forte admitted today that beginning in late November 2011, they agreed to aid a company known as Sunshine Universal to obtain federal grant funds for the stated reason of preparing an economic development study for Sweetwater, all in exchange for cash kickbacks to Maroño and Forte. Unknown to Maroño and Forte, Sunshine Universal was an undercover FBI entity. To aid the scheme, Maroño caused the passage of a resolution in Sweetwater that authorized the undercover agents’ company to apply for federal grant moneys using the authority of the city of Sweetwater. After the resolution was passed, Maroño and Forte personally met and negotiated with the undercover agents and accepted a series of cash payments in exchange for Maroño’s official actions in support of the grant scheme. During these negotiations and meetings, Forte acted as the front man for Maroño.
To further the scheme and avoid detection, Maroño also participated in what he believed to be audit telephone calls from the federal government to confirm the grantees’ performance on the grant. During two separate audit calls, both of which were recorded, Maroño lied to and misled the auditor, who was in fact an undercover FBI agent, about the actual use of the grant money and the grantee’s performance. For their corrupt actions, Maroño and Forte received $45,000. Both defendants have agreed to forfeit all the money they received as part of their plea agreements.
Mr. Ferrer commends the investigative efforts of the FBI Miami Area Corruption Task Force. This case is being prosecuted Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jared E. Dwyer and Robert K. Senior.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls.

Former Vicksburg Mayor Pleads Guilty to Bribery

NATCHEZ, MI—Paul Winfield, 40, former mayor of the city of Vicksburg, Mississippi, pled guilty in U.S. District Court today to bribery in connection with a pre-event disaster contract for the city of Vicksburg, announced U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis and FBI Special Agent in Charge Daniel McMullen.
Winfield will be sentenced by U.S. District Senior Judge David C. Bramlette, III on November 19, 2013, at 9:30 a.m. and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
In early 2012, while serving as the mayor of Vicksburg, Winfield met with a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) source, where they discussed pre-event disaster contracts for the city of Vicksburg. On July 18, 2012, Winfield again met with the FBI source at a restaurant in Jackson. After dinner, Winfield and the FBI source met inside the source’s vehicle, and the FBI source asked Winfield what would need to be done in order for the source’s company to get the pre-event disaster contract. Winfield responded “Ten” and held up 10 fingers, signifying $10,000. The FBI source asked Winfield if the FBI source could pay $5,000 now and $5,000 once the contract was awarded. Winfield agreed, and the FBI source paid Winfield $5,000 cash in the vehicle at that time.
On August 17, 2012, the FBI source met with Winfield in Natchez, Mississippi, where he paid Winfield an additional $2,000 in cash and asked if another $3,000 would be enough. The source then promised Winfield another $3,000 after the pre-event disaster contract was awarded.
As part of his plea agreement, Winfield agreed to forfeit the bribe money he accepted, and he also agreed to neither run for elected public office nor apply for or be employed by any governmental entity in the future.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst.