Two Former Philly Union Leaders Found Guilty of Embezzlement

Two former labor leaders were found guilty Thursday of embezzlement and other crimes following an 18-day federal jury trial in Philadelphia.

Dougherty, the former business manager and highest-ranking member of Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, was found guilty on 66 counts in a sprawling indictment that included embezzlement, wire fraud, and tax fraud charges.

Brian Burrows, who served as the union’s president and on the board of trustees of the electrical workers joint apprenticeship and training trust fund, was found guilty on all but three of the more than 20 counts he faced as well.

According to prosecutors, Dougherty used Local 98 credit cards to cover his daily expenses and enabled other union members to do the same thing. Dougherty also submitted fraudulent reimbursements and paid acquaintances for no-show jobs, prosecutors said.

They also schemed to have Local 98 pay for personal construction work on their homes and businesses. Related invoices falsely described the work as work performed at properties owned by the union.

Burrows, who was one of two people whose signatures were required on checks drawn from the union fund, signed-off on the expenses.

116 Counts

Dougherty and Burrows were indicted in 2019, along with seven others, in a 116-count indictment.

Dougherty faced one count of conspiracy to embezzle from a labor union and employee benefit plan; 34 counts of embezzlement and theft of labor union assets; 23 counts of wire fraud thefts from Local 98; two counts of wire fraud thefts from a political action committee; two counts of falsification of annual financial reports filed by a labor union; two counts of falsification of financial records required to be kept by a labor union; and five counts of filing false federal income tax returns.

Burrows faced one count of conspiracy to embezzle from a labor union and employee benefit plan; 14 counts of embezzlement and theft of labor union assets; two counts of falsification of annual financial reports filed by a labor union; two counts of falsification of financial records required to be kept by a labor union; and five counts of filing false federal income tax returns.

Four other defendants accused in the embezzlement scheme—Michael Neill, Marita Crawford, Niko Rodriguez, Brian Fiocca, and Anthony Massa—had taken guilty pleas.

The embezzlement scheme—both the conspiracy and substantive offenses—were laid out in counts one through 87.

Counts 88 through 96, which charged Dougherty with accepting unlawful payments from an employer, were dismissed Dec. 5 on the government’s own motion.

Those counts alleged that Dougherty used his position to advance the interests of MJK Electric Corp., which employed union workers. In exchange, prosecutors claimed that Dougherty received kickbacks and free services from MJK, including improvements on his home and his business.

Counts 97 through 116—charging Dougherty and former Philadelphia Councilman Bobby Hennon with conspiracy, bribery, and honest services fraud—had been severed and tried separately in 2021.

After that first trial, both were found guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit honest services fraud. Dougherty was further found guilty of seven counts of honest services wire fraud, while Henon was found guilty of eight counts of honest services wire fraud and one count of bribery.

Dougherty is represented by the Law Offices of Gregory J. Pagano PC. Burrows is represented by Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC.

The case is United States v. Dougherty, E.D. Pa., No. 2:19-cr-00064, 12/6/23.