What You Should Know By State Senator Rev. Rubén Díaz

Anniversary of the First Pro-Immigrant March in NYC 

  

You should know that on April 1^st , we will be celebrating the 11th Anniversary of the First Pro-Immigrant March in New York City. 

  

It is important to know that eleven years ago, to be exact, on April 1, 2006, I organized, together with Radio Visión Cristiana Internacional, Radio Cántico Nuevo and the New York Hispanic Clergy Organization, the first massive pro-immigrant march across the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City. 

  

In response to a national call-to-action for every major city in the nation to organize and protest the mistreatment of immigrants, and to address the necessity of solving the immigration problem in the nation, we, the Hispanic Ministers and other community groups organized the Great Walk in Solidarity with Immigrants where thousands of people joined us marching across the Brooklyn Bridge to 26 Federal Plaza, where our rally was held. 

  

Referring to our march, Ms. Leslie Casmir, in her article titled “Marching to Stay Here: Thousands Rally vs Immigrant Crackdown” in the New York Daily News on April 2, 2006 wrote the following: “Waving the flags of their homelands, tens of thousands of legal and undocumented immigrants streamed over the Brooklyn Bridge yesterday to protest a proposed crackdown on border crossing. The march was a smaller version of a massive pro-immigrant rally in Los Angeles last month but was still much bigger than anticipated - with word being spread mainly through Spanish churches and media.” 

  

Various major news and media outlets in New York covered the Great Walk in Solidarity with Immigrants, expressing their admiration for the march. 

  

Ms. Lorena Mongelli wrote the following in the New York Post on April 2, 2006: “A roiling sea of immigrants - many of them in the country illegally - and their supporters poured across the Brooklyn Bridge and into Manhattan yesterday to protest what they call "oppressive" reform measures currently under consideration in Congress. Marchers, waving flags from Mexico, Colombia, Honduras and El Salvador, chanted and carried signs recalling America's roots during the demonstration, organized by state Sen. Ruben Diaz, a Bronx Democrat and native of Puerto Rico.” 

  

Mr. Nicholas Confessore wrote an article in the New York Times on April 2, 2006 titled “Thousands Rally in New York in Support of Immigrants' Rights” stating: “Thousands of people marched from Brooklyn to Lower Manhattan yesterday in support of immigrants' rights, the largest such rally so far in the New York area and the latest in a string of marches tied to immigration legislation under consideration in Congress.”  

  

Even Mr. Andrés Duque, in his blog Blabbeando, wrote the following on March 31, 2006, the day before the March: “Hey, even I have acknowledged that the Reverend Diaz has done a great deal for immigrant communities.” 

  

As you can see, my dear reader, we, the Hispanic Clergy have been fighting for immigrants for many years. We will continue fighting, knowing that after eleven years since our historic Great Walk in Solidarity with Immigrants, the situation of 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States remains unresolved. 

  

I am Senator Reverend Rubén Díaz, and this is what you should know. 

March 15th New York City Campaign Finance Board Fillings for the 13th and 18th Council Districts

  Below are the amounts taken from the NYC CFB website as to how much each candidate in the two open council districts has raised, spent, and the amount of money on hand. No CFB matching funds are included. 

13th Council District

Candidate		Private Funds		Spending		Estimated Balance
Mark Gjonaj		217535		74828		142707
Marjorie Velazquez		70063		9810		60253
John Doyle		65080		20032		45048
John Marino		39830		6510		33320
John Cerini		12625		956		11671
Alex Gomez		5478		1280		4197
Abuhaikal Muhammad		970		15		955
Victor Ortiz		0		0		0

18th Council District

Candidate		Private Funds		Spending		Estimated Balance
Elvin Garcia		46155		4794		41361
Amanda Frias		20775		1108		19667
William Moore		100		0		100
John Perez		200		0		200

While there may be other people who have said they are running for either of the two open city council seats the names above are officially recognized by the NYC CFB, and listed for those districts. 

There are several names listed under the undeclared section of the CFB listings including current Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., who have not made their intentions official to the NYC CFB.

U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York Recovers $3.7 Billion in Forfeitures and Civil Actions In Fiscal Year 2016

In Excess of $1.4 Billion Recovered From Criminal and Civil Forfeiture Cases, More Than $2.2 Billion in Civil Actions

Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that the Office obtained recoveries of more than $1.4 billion in forfeiture actions, more than $2.2 billion in civil actions, and more than $31 million from restitution, criminal fines, and special assessments, between October 1, 2015, and September 30, 2016.

Manhattan Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said: “The $3.7 billion in forfeitures, penalties, and fines for fiscal year 2016 recovered by this Office demonstrate that those who break the law or commit civil offenses will not be allowed to profit from their misconduct. We are committed to taking the profit out of crime and compensating victims whenever possible through our prosecutions and civil actions.”

Forfeitures

Forfeited funds are generally deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund (the “Assets Forfeiture Fund”) and the Department of Treasury Forfeiture Fund. The forfeited funds are used to restore money to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.

General Motors

$900 million forfeited

In September 2015, the General Motors Company (“GM”) entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with this Office based on charges that GM concealed a potentially deadly safety defect from its U.S. regulator, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and, in the process, misled consumers concerning the safety of certain of GM’s cars. Pursuant to the deferred prosecution agreement, GM, among other things, agreed to the forfeiture of $900 million to the United States, which was completed in 2015.

Bank Julius Baer

$219,250,000 forfeited

In February 2016, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd. (“Julius Baer”), a Swiss bank headquartered in Zurich, entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with this Office based on charges that Julius Baer conspired with many of its U.S. taxpayer-clients and others to help U.S. taxpayers hide billions of dollars in offshore accounts from the IRS and to evade U.S. taxes on the income earned in those accounts. Pursuant to the deferred prosecution agreement, Julius Baer, among other things, agreed to the forfeiture of $219,250,000 to the United States.

PokerStars and Related Cases

$81,003,765 forfeited

In July 2012, the United States reached an agreement with the two largest online poker companies in the United States, Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars. The United States had brought a civil forfeiture and money laundering action against these companies and their assets. Under the terms of the settlement, Full Tilt Poker forfeited essentially all of its assets to the United States. PokerStars agreed to forfeit $547 million, to be paid in several installments, and to reimburse the approximately $184 million owed by Full Tilt Poker to foreign players. The settlement further provided that PokerStars would acquire the forfeited Full Tilt Poker assets from the United States. Fiscal Year 2016, $48 million was forfeited to the United States by PokerStars and more than $33 million was forfeited by other parties in related actions. To date, in excess of $1.3 billion has been forfeited in the PokerStars civil forfeiture action and related cases.

U.S. v. Tucker et al., and Related Cases

$48 million forfeited

In February 2016, this Office charged Scott Tucker and Jason Muir with violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”) and the Truth in Lending Act (“TILA”) for operating a $2 billion nationwide internet payday lending enterprise that systematically evaded state laws in order to charge illegal interest rates as high as 700% on loans. In connection with that investigation, on February 9, 2016, the United States entered into a non-prosecution agreement with two tribal corporations controlled by the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma, a Native American tribe. As part of that agreement, the tribal corporations agreed to the forfeiture of $48 million in criminal proceeds from Tucker’s payday lending enterprise that were held in tribal bank accounts.

VimpelCom

$40 million forfeited

In February 2016, VimpelCom Limited, an Amsterdam-based telecommunications company, entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with this Office and the Fraud Section of the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice based on charges that VimpelCom conspired to make bribe payments to a government official in Uzbekistan between 2006 and 2012. Pursuant to the deferred prosecution agreement, VimpelCom, among other things, agreed to forfeit $40 million to the United States.

Civil Actions and Restitution, Criminal Fines, and Special Assessments

U.S. v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. et al.

$1.2 billion collected

In April 2016, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., settled a False Claims Act lawsuit brought by this Office alleging that Wells Fargo had engaged in reckless underwriting of Federal Housing Administration mortgage loans for nearly a decade. As part of the settlement, Wells Fargo paid $1.2 billion and admitted to certain conduct alleged in the complaint, and a Wells Fargo executive also made admissions.

U.S. v. CenterLight Healthcare, Inc. et al.

$46.7 million collected

In January 2016, this Office simultaneously filed a lawsuit against and entered into a settlement with CenterLight Healthcare, Inc., and CenterLight Health System, Inc. (collectively, “CenterLight”), resolving False Claims Act claims arising from the enrollment of ineligible members in CenterLight’s managed long-term care plan. Under the terms of the settlement, CenterLight paid a total of $46,751,086.74 to the Medicaid Program, $18,700,434.70 of which went to the United States. In addition, CenterLight was required to reform its business practices and admit to conduct alleged in the complaint.

U.S. ex rel. Krigstein v. Motives, Inc.

$13.375 million collected

In July 2016, this Office simultaneously filed a False Claims Act lawsuit and entered into a $13.375 million settlement with Motives, Incorporated, an importer of clothing, and Motives Far East and Motives China Limited, foreign manufacturers of clothing (collectively, “Motives”), for conspiring to underpay customs duties. (United States v. Motives, Inc., No. 13 Civ. 9030 (GBD)). As part of the settlement, Motives paid a total of $13.375 million and admitted to allegations in the complaint.

United States ex rel. Peikin et al. v. Salix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and United States ex rel. Dhaliwal v. Salix Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

$54 million collected

In June 2016, this Office simultaneously sued and settled with Salix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (“Salix”), a specialty pharmaceutical company. The settlement, in the amount of $54 million, resolved claims that Salix violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and False Claims Act by using its “speaker programs” as a mechanism to pay kickbacks to doctors to induce them to prescribe Salix drugs and medical devices that were reimbursed by federal health care programs. In connection with the settlement, Salix admitted to paying doctors to serve as “speakers” at events that were primarily social in nature, that were held at high-end restaurants, and where the “speakers” spent little or no time discussing the relevant Salix product.

For further information, the United States Attorneys’ Annual Statistical Reports can be found online at http://www.justice.gov/usao/reading_room/foiamanuals.html.

Investment Adviser And Broker Found Guilty In Manhattan Federal Court Of Securities Fraud, Wire Fraud, Conspiracy And Aggravated Identity Theft Charges

   Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that CHRISTOPHER CERVINO, a/k/a “Smitty,” and SHEIK F. KHAN, a/k/a “Abida Khan,” were found guilty yesterday afternoon in Manhattan federal court after a three-week jury trial before U.S. District Judge Andrew L. Carter, Jr. for their roles in a securities fraud scheme involving a publicly traded over-the-counter company called VGTel, Inc. (“VGTL”).

Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said:  “Yesterday, a unanimous jury found Sheik Khan, an investment adviser, and Christopher Cervino, a registered broker, guilty of securities fraud relating to a company called VGTel.  The stock fraud scheme Khan and Cervino participated in defrauded 100 investors of more than $15 million, including nearly $5 million from Khan’s clients.  For their roles in the scheme, Khan and Cervino now stand convicted of federal crimes.”

According to the Indictment, other filings in Manhattan federal court, and the evidence presented at trial:

The VGTL scheme was conceived and led by Edward Durante, a recidivist securities fraud defendant who pleaded guilty in August 2016 to various crimes related to VGTL, including conspiracy, securities fraud, money laundering and perjury.  The defendants’ efforts to artificially inflate the market for VGTL increased the stock price from approximately $.25 per share in April 2012 to as much as $1.90, and dramatically inflated the trading volume, which increased the defendants’ abilities to raise private investments in VGTL.  To compensate CERVINO for his efforts to control and manipulate the market in VGTL, Durante made at least two cash payments to CERVINO totaling $35,000, in addition to the substantial commissions Cervino received for executing trades in VGTL.  For her part, KHAN received more than $400,000 from Durante, including more than $100,000 in payments for liquidating her clients’ investments in safe annuities so that the money could then be invested into VGTL.  KHAN’s clients lost virtually the entirety of their investments in VGTL. 

CERVINO, 44, of Franklin Lakes, New Jersey, and KHAN, 50, of Las Vegas, Nevada, were each convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison; one count of securities fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; and one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.  In addition to these charges, KHAN was also convicted of investment adviser fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, and aggravated identity theft crimes, which carries a mandatory sentence of two years in prison.

The statutory maximum sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.    

Mr. Kim praised the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and thanked the Securities and Exchange Commission for its assistance. 

A.G. Schneiderman Statement On District Court Decision In UPS Cigarette Case

   New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman released the following statement, responding to today’s decision by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in his lawsuit against United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) for unlawfully shipping contraband cigarettes:

“Today’s decision is a win for New York and a win for public health.

“We’re very pleased that the Court agreed with us on all claims, finding that UPS has repeatedly violated numerous state and federal contraband cigarette trafficking laws – as well as its own agreement with the State – by shipping hundreds of thousands of cartons of cigarettes to consumers in New York.  

“Smoking is the number one preventable public health crisis; but to address it, we must stop the flow of illegal cigarettes – especially to our kids.

“I thank NYC Corporation Counsel Zach Carter and the Law Department for their partnership on this case, and look forward to continuing to work together to protect New Yorkers.”

The lawsuit was filed jointly by the State of New York and the City of New York in February 2015.

A.G. Schneiderman Announces Guilty Plea And Jail Time For Manhattan Restaurant Owner Who Committed Wage Theft; Restitution For Dozens Of Workers

  Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced the guilty plea of Konstantinos Aronis, owner of K.M.S. Restaurant Corp. (“K.M.S.”) who operated a business under the name Nations Café. Aronis and K.M.S. faced these criminal charges for failure to pay restaurant staff for hours worked and for filing false documents with New York State in order to hide underpayments and avoid paying unemployment insurance.

The defendants today pled guilty to all charges before the Honorable Justice Larry Stephen and K.M.S. Restaurant Corp. was then sentenced in court. Aronis will be sentenced on March 31st to 60 days in jail and five years of probation. In addition, Aronis and K.M.S. Restaurant Corp. paid $300,000 in restitution today and agreed to pay an additional $204,000 for the stolen wages pursuant to a restitution order. Aronis and K.M.S. Restaurant Corp. also agreed to pay $58,561 in restitution to the New York State Department of Labor, Unemployment Insurance Division, for unpaid unemployment insurance premiums. In total, Aronis and K.M.S. Restaurant Corp. will pay $562,561 in restitution to workers and the State of New York.

This conviction follows a number of other steps taken by Attorney General Schneiderman to protect New York’s workers from exploitation, including but not limited to: ending unscrupulous non-compete agreements for workers at multiple companies; obtaining national agreements from six retail corporations comprising 13 brands, such as the Gap, Victoria’s Secret, Bath & Body Works, and J. Crew, to end the harmful practice of “on-call scheduling;” and pursuing a first-of-its-kind lawsuit against Domino’s Pizza for repeated violations of law and underpayment of workers at three franchise restaurants, which resulted in a $480,000 settlement.

Since taking office, the Attorney General has recovered more than $27 million for more than 20,000 workers victimized by wage theft, and levied more than $2.5 million in penalties against unscrupulous employers.

“A worker’s most basic right is the right to be paid for his or her work. We have zero tolerance for anyone who tries to exploit New York’s workers and the families they support,” said Attorney General Schneiderman. “My office will take aggressive action, including seeking felony convictions, payment of restitution, and jail time for any employer who breaks the law by failing to pay employees for their labor.”

“New York State will not tolerate the mistreatment of workers,” said New York State Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon. “Under Governor Cuomo’s strong leadership, state agencies, including the New York State Department of Labor, continue to combat worker exploitation and misclassification to make sure all New York State workers are paid and treated fairly. I thank Attorney General Schneiderman and his team for working with us and for bringing Mr. Aronis to justice.”

The defendants admitted in court today that Aronis’ K.M.S. Restaurant Corp., located at 875 1st Avenue, New York, NY, failed to pay wages to its workers between May 2011 and May 2015. At varying times during this time period, the defendants employed numerous workers at Nations Café and two other restaurants located at 1066 2nd Avenue, New York, NY and 1072 2nd Avenue, New York, NY. The defendants violated the law by failing to pay their employees at least minimum wage for all hours worked and by failing to pay those employees overtime or one and one-half times their regular rates for hours worked in excess of 40 per workweek. 

Moreover, the defendants occasionally scheduled employees to work seven days a week and paid some employees a weekly salary instead of an hourly rate. The defendants also failed to keep accurate payroll records for each employee and failed to provide employees with paychecks indicating the hours each individual worked. 

Between May 2011 and May 2015, the defendants failed to pay at least minimum wage and overtime for all hours worked at the three restaurant locations resulting in $504,473 in wage underpayments owed to 34 workers. Additionally, the defendants filed false New York State Department of Taxation and Finance Form NYS-45 Quarterly Combined Withholding, Wage Reporting, and Unemployment Insurance Returns by reporting that they had paid all required Unemployment Insurance Contributions, when in fact they had not. The Attorney General’s investigation revealed that the defendants underpaid Unemployment Insurance Contributions by nearly $60,000. 

The felony supreme court information, filed today in Manhattan Supreme Court, charges Aronis and K.M.S. with one count of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree, an E felony, and one count of Failure to Pay Wages in Accordance with the Labor Law, an unclassified misdemeanor.

The Office of the Attorney General will pay out restitution collected from the defendants directly to the victimized workers.

As a condition of the plea, Aronis and K.M.S. Restaurant Corp. must re-file amended New York State Taxation and Finance tax documents to properly account for the employees that they employed between 2012 and 2016.

The Attorney General thanks the New York State Department of Labor Office of Special Investigations, Labor Standards Division, and Unemployment Insurance Division for their assistance in this investigation and prosecution.

Attorney General Schneiderman Announces Felony Indictment Of State Senator Robert Ortt And Former State Senator George Maziarz

Senator Ortt Indicted On Three Felony Counts Related To Alleged Pass-Through Scheme Devised To Supplement Taxpayer-Funded Salary With Payments To Spouse For No-Show Job

Former State Senator Maziarz Indicted On Five Counts For Allegedly Orchestrating Scheme To Use Campaign Cash To Secretly Pay Staff Member Involved With Sexual Harassment Lawsuit

   Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced the unsealing of an indictment charging State Senator Robert Ortt with three felony counts of Filing a False Instrument in the First Degree. Ortt’s predecessor in the state senate, former State Senator George Maziarz, was also charged in the indictment with five felony counts of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree. All of the charges are Class E felonies. If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of one and one-third to four years on each count. The case was referred to the Office of the Attorney General by the State Board of Elections.

According to the indictment and papers filed in court yesterday, Maziarz is alleged to have orchestrated a multilayered pass-through scheme that enabled him to use money from his own campaign committee, The Committee to Elect Maziarz State Senate, and also from the Niagara County Republican Committee, to funnel secret campaign payments to a former senate staffer who had left government service amid charges of sexual harassment. According to court filings, the two committees paid the former government staff member $49,000 in 2012 and $46,000 in 2013-2014. To conceal these payments—and to avoid public scrutiny of his decision to retain the former staffer for campaign-related work—Maziarz, acting with others, falsely reported the expenditures on five separate filings with the New York State Board of Elections as payments to pass-through entities, rather than to the staff member, in clear violation of New York State law.

The court filings and the indictment further allege that while serving as Mayor of North Tonawanda, Robert Ortt participated in an illegal scheme to pad his taxpayer-funded salary. As papers filed with the court allege, in order to make up for a difference in salary that Ortt would be paid as Mayor (Ortt previously served as Town Clerk/Treasurer), Ortt and others devised a pass-through scheme to pay Ortt’s wife for a job for which she performed no actual work. Ortt’s wife received approximately $21,500 from 2010 to 2014 as part of the scheme. It is alleged that the payments to Ortt’s wife were falsely reported as payments to one of the same pass-through entities that was used to pay for the former senate staff member for Maziarz.

“No-show jobs and secret payments are the lifeblood of public corruption. New Yorkers deserve full and honest disclosures by their elected officials — not the graft and shadowy payments uncovered by our investigation. These allegations represent a shameful breach of the public trust — and we will hold those responsible to account,” said Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman.

"As we have seen too often in western New York, this case presents another instance when public officials served their own interests instead of those to whom they were positioned to serve," said Adam S. Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Buffalo office. "The defendants are alleged to have chosen greed over good and their behavior compromised the integrity of government.  It is the expectation of the public that government officials are not in their positions to self-deal.”​

“Campaign finance disclosure ensures New Yorkers have confidence that their elected officials are serving them honestly and with transparency, said Risa Sugarman, Chief Enforcement Counsel for the New York State Board of Elections. “The public has the right to know how their representatives spend the contributions they receive and that the disclosures are honest and accurate. We will continue to work together with the attorney general to assure New Yorkers that violations of the public trust do not go unpunished.”

A.G. Schneiderman also announced the guilty plea of Henry Wojtaszek.  Wojtaszek is a former Chairman of the Niagara County Republican Committee, a former Attorney for the City of North Tonawanda, and the current President of the Western Region Off-Track Betting Corporation of New York. Wojtaszek pleaded guilty on Wednesday to violating Election Law Section 14-126-4, a class A misdemeanor, before Judge Gary F. Stiglemeier in Albany City Court.

The Attorney General’s Office wants to thank the New York State Board of Elections Division of Election Law Enforcement and Chief Enforcement Counsel Risa Sugarman for their assistance. 

The charges against the defendants are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

Statement From NYC Comptroller Stringer on New York City’s Missed Opportunity to Benefit from A.G. Schneiderman’s Land Bank Grants

 Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced $20 million in grants to 19 Land Banks across New York State — bringing the Attorney General’s total contributions to Land Banks to $57 million since 2013. Land Banks serve not only as a revitalization strategy for blighted properties, but also transform empty lots and vacant properties into affordable housing. Though the creation of a Land Bank and Land Trust has long been proposed by Comptroller Stringer and advocates to mitigate our affordable housing crisis, they have not been created. As such, New York City was not a recipient of these grants.

“This is a mistake of our own making. We should be using every tool in the kit to solve our greatest challenges — and we aren’t. If we want to build more affordable housing, and if we want to support working families, we need to leverage government-owned lots that have sat vacant for decades. By now, we should have created a city Land Bank and Land Trust — and begun creating tens of thousands of units of low-income housing. We just left more money on the table.”

“In the age of Donald Trump, when Washington is working around the clock to undercut affordable housing and take an ax to NYCHA’s budget, we should be competing for every penny. But today New York City let a real opportunity slip by, and we shouldn’t let it happen again. We should create a Land Bank and Land Trust.”

In a February 2016 audit, Comptroller Stringer’s office found that the City owns more than 1,100 parcels of vacant land and sells hundreds of tax liens on persistently delinquent sites each year. In a companion report, Building an Affordable Future: The Promise of a New York City Land Bank, Comptroller Stringer announced his proposal for a New York City Land Bank and Land Trust. By utilizing vacant, government-owned lots through a Land Bank and Land Trust, the City could create over 57,000 units of permanent low-income housing.