Former supervisory transportation security officer at newark airport sentenced to 30 months in prison for taking bribes
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
June 7, 2011 |
NEWARK, N.J. – A former Supervisory Transportation Security Officer employed by the Transportation Security Administration at Newark Liberty International Airport was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for accepting bribes and kickbacks from a coworker who stole money regularly from passengers during security screenings, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Michael Arato, 42, of Ewing, N.J., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Jose L. Linares to an Information charging him with accepting bribes. Judge Linares also imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From September 2009 to October 2010, Arato was the Supervisory Transportation Security Officer at the B-3 security checkpoint for Terminal B at Newark Airport. During that time, Arato permitted subordinate security officer Al Raimi, 29, of Woodbridge, N.J., to steal between $10,000 and $30,000 in cash from travelers. In exchange, Raimi would “kick up” a portion of the stolen money to Arato. During the three-week period between September 13 and October 5, 2010, video surveillance captured Arato accepting approximately $3,100 in bribes.
Arato also admitted that he regularly stole from passengers traveling through his checkpoint.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Linares sentenced Arato to three years of supervised release, and ordered him to pay $24,150 to the victims of his offense and forfeit $3,100 to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Raimi, 29, of Woodbridge, N.J., pleaded guilty before Judge Linares on February 24, 2011, to an Information charging him with theft by a government officer. He is currently scheduled to be sentenced on September 20, 2011.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the Department of Homeland Security, Office of the Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gregory K. Null for the Northeast Region, and detectives and officers of the Port Authority Police Department of New York and New Jersey, under the direction of Superintendent Michael A. Fedorko, with the investigation leading to today’s sentence.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Kanefsky of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.
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Defense counsel: John Yauch Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
