Top Birdsall Exec Sentenced To Three Years In State Prison

by Patricia A. Miller

The former executive vice president of Birdsall Services Group will spend the next three years in state prison for his part in a scheme that funneled more than $1 million in illegal corporate political contributions into candidates' coffers.

Ocean County Superior Court Judge James Den Uyl sentenced Thomas Rospos, 64, of Belmar on Friday for violations of the state's pay-to-play law, Acting Attorney General Robert Lougy said.

Rospos pleaded guilty on Feb. 25 to a charge of third-degree tampering with public records or information. He paid $150,000 for the state for forfeiture of the political contributions that he made on behalf BSG that were reimbursed by the firm. He is debarred for 10 years from personally bidding on any public contracts in New Jersey or holding an interest of five percent or greater in any company that bids for such contracts.

“Rospos and his co-defendants engaged an elaborate criminal scheme to hide their firm’s political contributions so that they could secure millions of dollars in public contracts for which they should have been disqualified,” Lougy said. “With these prosecutions, we have struck an important blow for integrity in public contracting in New Jersey.”

The scheme worked like this: instead of Birdsall Services Group making corporate political contributions to campaigns and political organizations that would disqualify it from public contracts, employees and shareholders of the firm made personal political contributions of $300 or less, which do not have to be reported.

Multiple personal checks were bundled together at Birdsall Services Group and sent to the appropriate campaign or political organization. The shareholders and employees were then illegally reimbursed by Birdsall Services Group, directly or indirectly, through added bonus payments, Lougy said.

The first Birdsall executive to be sentenced was Howard Birdsall, 73, former CEO and the largest shareholder of BSG Judge Den Uyl sentenced him to four years in state prison on April 22. Birdsall pleaded guilty to second-degree misconduct by a corporate official.

Birdsall also had to pay $49,808 to the state in forfeiture of political contributions he made that were reimbursed by BSG. His brother, William Birdsall, 67, former senior vice president of BSG, pleaded guilty on May 2 to third-degree misconduct by a corporate official.

William Birdsall is slated to be sentence on July 11 and could face up to 270 days in the county jail. He paid $129,115 to the state for his reimbursed political contributions, as well as a $75,000 public corruption penalty. He is debarred for 10 years from public contracts in New Jersey, Lougy said.

“By putting top executives of this firm in prison, we’ve sent a message that criminal conduct aimed at skirting New Jersey’s pay-to-play law will be aggressively prosecuted,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “Our taxpayers have a right to expect that public contracts will be awarded in a transparent manner and not steered to the biggest political contributors.”

BSG pleaded guilty on June 13, 2013 to charges of first-degree money laundering and second-degree making false representations for government contracts.

The firm paid two major criminal penalties: a $500,000 public corruption profiteering penalty and a $500,000 anti-money laundering profiteering penalty. Both penalties were the maximum amount authorized by law. BSG also paid the state $2.6 million to settle a civil forfeiture action filed by the Attorney General’s Office in connection with the criminal case.

Another indicted BSG executive pleaded guilty this year and is awaiting sentencing. Scott MacFadden, 61, Brick Township, BSG's former chief administrative officer, pleaded guilty on Jan. 6 to third-degree misconduct by a corporate official and faces a recommended sentence of up to 364 days in jail as a condition of a term of probation. He must forfeit $30,000 in reimbursed political contributions he made.

MacFadden is the former longtime Brick Township administrator.

Two former employees of the marketing department of BSG, Philip Angarone, 44, of Hamilton, N.J., the former marketing director, and Eileen Kufahl, 51, of Bradley Beach, N.J., pleaded guilty pre-indictment for their roles in the scheme and also are awaiting sentencing.

The remaining defendants who are charged in the indictment face first-degree counts of conspiracy and money laundering.

The scheme continued for six years, Lougy said.