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Union Facts

Treasury Employees

Officials Sentenced

Office of Labor-Management Enforcement

The Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) conducts both civil and criminal investigations of alleged violations of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) and related laws.

These investigations by OLMS District Offices involve issues such as embezzlements of union funds, union officer elections, the filing of required reports by unions and others with OLMS, and the imposition of trusteeships over subordinate unions by a parent body. These investigations may result in legal enforcement actions.

DateDescription
August 25th, 2022On August 25, 2022, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, Jonathon Ortino, former President of National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) Chapter 165 (located in San Bruno, Calif.), was sentenced to one year of probation and 80 hours of community service. He was also ordered to pay a special monetary assessment of $300. Restitution will be determined at a future hearing. On April 1, 2022, Ortino was found guilty by a jury on three counts of wire fraud and two counts of making false statements on Form LM-3, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343 and 18 U.S.C. 1001(a)(2), respectively. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS San Francisco-Seattle District Office and the Department of Homeland Securitys Office of Inspector General.
August 5th, 2013On August 5, 2013, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, Harold Washington, former President of National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) Chapter 105 (located in Chula Vista, Calif.), was sentenced to one year of probation and was ordered to pay a $100 fine. On April 24, 2013, Washington pled guilty to embezzling over $38,000 and falsifying LM financial reports, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1001. Washington previously paid full restitution. The sentencing follows a joint investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office, Homeland Security Office of Professional Responsibility, and United States Customs and Border Protection.
June 24th, 2013On June 24, 2013, in the United States District Court for the Central Division for the District of Utah, Sheila Brown, former Treasurer of National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) Independent Chapter 67 (located in Ogden, Utah), pled guilty to one count of Theft from a Program Receiving Federal Funds, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 666, and was sentenced to 12 months of probation. A restitution hearing is scheduled to take place in the next 90 days. The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Denver District Office.
October 1st, 2012On October 1, 2012, Rebecca Mercer, former Secretary-Treasurer of National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) Chapter 284 in Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to one year and one day of imprisonment, three years of probation, and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $50,822. In June 2011, Mercer pled guilty to one count of wire fraud. The investigation revealed that between July 2006 and June 2008, Mercer embezzled more than $50,000 in union funds through unauthorized debit card transactions and ATM withdrawals.
December 7th, 2010On December 7, 2010, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, Tamara Schultz, former Benefits Coordinator for the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) (located in Washington, D.C.), pled guilty to one count of first degree theft for wrongfully obtaining and using property of a value of $1,000 or more from NTEU. Following the plea, Schultz was sentenced to 90 days in jail (suspended), one year unsupervised probation, and she was ordered to pay a $50 special assessment fee. The plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
March 10th, 2008On March 10, 2008, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Darren Johnson, former President of National Treasury Employees Union Chapter 78, was sentenced to three years of supervised release, including six months in a community corrections center, ordered to make restitution in the amount of $13,748.50 and attend a substance abuse program. On December 3, 2007, Johnson pled guilty to one count of bank robbery and incidental crimes. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit District Office.
September 10th, 2002On September 10, 2002, in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona, Gregory B. Floto, former president of the National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 116, was sentenced to six months of home detention, three years of probation, fined $2,000, ordered to pay a $100 special assessment, and ordered to pay $7,714.68 in remaining restitution to the union (or bonding company). On March 15, 2002, Floto pled guilty to making a false statement to a federal agent to conceal his embezzlement of $15,714.21 in union funds after being charged in a seven-count indictment. This case was prosecuted by attorneys from the Public Integrity Section of the U.S. Department of Justice, following a joint investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office and U.S. Customs Internal Affairs Tucson office.