By Patrick Markey
A leading Irish-American union official and an Irish building contractor are among those recently indicted by Manhattan prosecutors following a massive investigation into alleged Mafia corruption of New York’s construction business.
Labor leader Michael Forde, an executive with the predominantly Irish Local 608 carpenters’ union, is one of 11 union officials named in an indictment filed with the Manhattan State Supreme Court last week.
The indictment also names Finbar O’Neill, a County Tyrone native who operates Terra Firma, a Bronx-based construction and general contracting firm.
The 57-count indictment portrays a wide-ranging criminal enterprise involving the reputed Lucchese crime family, high-ranking union officials and contractors.
Bribes, bid-rigging, and so-called "mob-tax" practices were also part of the corruption unearthed by the three-year investigation that probed the operations of 11 construction companies, according to the indictment.
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"For generations, organized crime has had its tentacles deeply embedded in the economic and social fabric of the city," said Manhattan District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau.
"Despite law enforcement successes over the years, [the] indictment demonstrates the fight against organized crime is far from over. The mob’s influence in the construction industry — although not as pervasive as it once was — still exacts a tremendous cost in the city."
According to Morgenthau’s office, prosecutors pinpointed organized crime figures, corrupt union officials and participating contractors in eight construction projects, including two Queens schools, a resurfacing job on the Triborough Bridge and a Park Central Hotel renovation.
The indictment charges members of the reputed Lucchese Crime Family used bribery, bid-rigging and other anti-competitive schemes to siphon off millions of dollars from public and private companies.
Eleven of those indicted are alleged associates of the Lucchese family — who go by such colorful nicknames as "Razor," "Big Joe" and "Flowers" — operating in the Prince Street Crew and another Brooklyn-based crew to broker bribes.
Among the union representatives named, Forde and another Local 608 official, Martin Deveraux, were both charged with receiving bribes in return for allowing the use of non-union labor and other contract violations, according to the indictment.
County Tyrone native O’Neill has also been named as an alleged participant in the corruption scheme.
Prosecutors allege O’Neill, who runs Terra Firma Construction Management and General Contracting, used his Luchesse crime family connections to coerce a contractor to remove a lien from a project after money was stolen from him.
The Tyrone man also paid "mob tax" and falsified statements to conceal the payments, according to charges made in the indictment.
O’Neill did not return a call to his Bronx firm seeking comment.
All defendants have been charged under New York’s Organized Crime Control Act, a racketeering felony which carries up to 25 years in prison. Forde was released on $20,000 bail. O’Neill was also released on $25,000 bail, a spokeswoman for the Manhattan district attorney’s office said.
Union officials contacted about the charges referred all calls to attorney Brian O’Dwyer, Local 608’s legal representative.
"They are confident Michael Forde will be completely exonerated and will continue with his duties as head of the District Council of Carpenters," O’Dwyer said.
Forde, a prominent face in Irish-American circles, has a long history in the city’s labor movement. His father, also Michael Forde, immigrated to the U.S. from County Mayo and helped establish the Local 608 carpenters’ union as one of New York’s most prominent labor groups.
Forde’s associates quickly dismissed the charges and rallied to his support. Forde will be honored at a Gaelic Athletic Association Minor Board dinner this Saturday evening. Organizers said they have received many calls expressing support for the union leader.
"I cannot accept these charges. They are on a fishing expedition. Mike Forde will be vindicated and vindicated quickly," said Mike Keane, president of the GAA’s Minor Board. "I certainly think somebody is making a grave mistake. He’s the salt of the earth."