Sun Aug 02, 2009 at 12:26:46 PM EDT
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The Record published a story yesterday trying to track down the origins and end to a $4,000 contribution apparently made to Union City Mayor and Assemblyman Brian Stack:A political fund linked to Union City Mayor Brian Stack received a $4,000 donation in the middle of August 2007 - the same time that the U.S. Attorney's Office says a "middleman" for an unnamed "Union City official" received a $4,000 check from the government informant at the center of a far-reaching federal corruption sting.
A donation of $4,000 from BH Property Management - identified in a federal complaint as "an FBI undercover company" that was used to facilitate money laundering - shows up on a 2007 campaign finance report for Union City First, a political action committee linked to Stack, who is also a state senator.
And a payment of $4,000 by a property management company shows up in the government's complaint against Shimon Haber, one of the 44 people charged in the sting. The complaint says the check was intended to pave the way for help with a development project. There has been speculation that more shoes would drop after forty-four people were arrested in the recent corruption bust. The Record was unable to get comment from Stack, his attorney or anyone associated with the fund for their story. The Record provided more of the pieces they are putting together including the Solomon Dwek connection:In the complaint, Solomon Dwek, the government's cooperating witness, discussed using a property management company in the summer of 2007 to funnel a $4,000 check to someone described as a "middleman" for a "Union City official" in exchange for help with the development project.
"I can get you a check. ... I have a management company that doesn't show up anywhere," Dwek is quoted in the complaint as telling Michael Altman, another man who was charged in the case.
The complaint goes on to say that on or about Aug. 16, 2007, a representative of the Union City official "accepted the $4,000 check payable to the political committee, placing it in his pocket."
A footnote in the complaint explains that "the $4,000 check made payable to the political committee was drawn on the account of a company that ... in reality, was an FBI front company." The complaint did not identify the Union City official, the middleman or the political committee, beyond calling it a Union City official's political fund.
Records for Union City First maintained by the state Election Law Enforcement Committee indicate the fund accepted a $4,000 check from BH Property Management that was dated Aug. 15, 2007. We'll have to see where this story goes to find out if there is a fire behind the smoke that the Record is pointing to. Politically, Stack made news recently for the fact that he hadn't endorsed a candidate for Governor yet, which may turn out to be a blessing in disguise for Corzine if there is more to this story. |
| Jason Springer :: The Record questions contribution from FBI informant to Stack linked fund |
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