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SNOW REMOVAL BRIBE TAKES COMPANY DOWN

On Behalf of | Mar 26, 2014 | Criminal Law

It doesn’t pay to bribe New Jersey Transit officers, as Edward O’Neill, age 53, found out the hard way. O’Neill, president of PPW Contracting in Lakewood, pleaded guilty to bribing NJ Transit terminal manager Donna Schiereck.

Incidentally, Schiereck was also charged in this case, and has retired as a manager of the Trenton station terminals. Evidently, the bribe also included a bonus – a power washing of her house.

Another officer of PPW, VP Thomas Braden, also pleaded guilty in this case. He had agreed to pay two NJ Transit employees $40,000 to “help” the company get a snow-removal contract.

This case may have dated back as far as 2011. At that time, PPW officials gave NJ Transit workers $20,000 in order to help them to obtain snow-removal contracts for 2011-2012. One of the bribed employees was recorded acting unlawfully, and thus agreed to start cooperating with Federal law enforcement that April.

BRIBERY AND WHITE COLLAR CRIME

Later that fall, Schiereck said that the snow removal contract for Trenton station was probably not going to PPW. It was then that the bribe to Schiereck was offered – and she took it.

The informant then called Braden and said they “got the snow in Trenton.” Braden’s looking at a potential of 10 years in jail, and $250.000 in fines. O’Neil is facing up to five years jail time, and a $250,000 fine. Both will be sentenced in spring.

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