Former Hoboken, Newark Official Carmelo Garcia Indicted For Taking Bribes Of Cash, Watches

NORTH JERSEY — Former Hoboken official and Newark Deputy Mayor Carmelo Garcia was indicted Friday for allegedly taking cash bribes and $19,000 worth of watches in a scheme to help two businessmen acquire property from the city of Newark, said the U.S. attorney's office in a release.

Indicted with Garcia on Friday were Frank Valvano Jr., 52, of Florham Park and Irwin Sablosky, 60, of Springfield, co-owners of a New Jersey-based pawnbroker and jewelry business that allegedly provided watches and cash to Garcia.

The U.S. attorney's office said that Garcia — who for a time was the director of Hoboken's low-income housing and later worked at the Newark Community Economic Development Corp. (NCEDC) — was indicted Friday by a federal grand jury in a conspiracy to help the business owners buy and redevelop land owned by the city of Newark.

Garcia also had served as a Democratic state assemblyman from 2014-2016 and as Hoboken's director of human services before the alleged crimes were committed.

In an extensive 2016 profile on NJ.com, Garcia — one of the younger officials in North Jersey politics — spoke excitedly of his future in public service and told of humble beginnings in Hoboken, having escaped the city's gentrification fires as a child.

The Charges

Garcia, 45, along with Valvano and Sablosky, have been charged with:

• One count of conspiracy to defraud the city of Newark and the NCEDC facilitated by the use of interstate wire transmissions;
• 17 counts of honest services wire fraud; and
• Four counts of use of interstate facilities to promote and facilitate bribery in violation of the Travel Act.
• Garcia is additionally charged with three counts of receiving bribes in connection with the business of a federally funded local government and organization.
• Valvano and Sablosky are additionally charged with three counts of offering the bribes.

The defendants will be arraigned in federal court on a date to be determined.

'Extensive Communication'

According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court:

From at least 2017 through April 2019, Garcia sought and received money and other benefits from Valvano, Sablosky, and others in exchange for Garcia’s use of his official positions and influence to advance real estate development matters of interest to Valvano and Sablosky.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, "Garcia also received jewelry, including multiple high-end watches and chains, from Valvano’s and Sablosky’s pawnbroker and jewelry business, including a Rolex watch with a selling price of $8,900, a Cartier watch with a selling price of $3,295, an Omega watch with a selling price of $7,295, and a chain with a selling price of $9,345."

Office said that phone records and text messages showed "extensive communication" among the three men and others, "including text messages in which Garcia arranged to personally collect cash provided by Valvano and Sablosky."

Allegedly Received Bribe In The Bathroom

A release from the U.S. Attorney's Office said that in 2018, while Garcia was Newark's acting deputy mayor, he received an envelope containing $25,000 in cash, supplied by Valvano through an intermediary, in the restroom of a New Jersey restaurant.

The U.S. Attorney's Office says an associate of Garcia (identified in the indictment as “Individual 1”) also participated in the scheme.

Officials say that the men tried to hide the payments by referring to them in texts as "docs" and "butter."

Potential Jail Time

The honest services fraud conspiracy and honest services wire fraud charges each carry a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. The Travel Act charges each carry a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison. The bribery concerning governments receiving federal funds charges each carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

All charges are punishable by a fine of $250,000 or twice the amount of the pecuniary gain from the offense. The indictment also seeks forfeiture of ill-gotten gains obtained from the bribery scheme.

An indictment is not a conviction, but is rendered after a grand jury determines that there's enough evidence to proceed with a trial.

Acting U.S. Attorney Honig credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr. in Newark; special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Michael Montanez; and special agents of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Christina Scaringi, with the investigation leading to the charges.

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