Former Bakersfield Union Officer Pleads Guilty to Embezzlement

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — Edward Padilla, 56, of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty today to embezzlement of union funds, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, between September 2012 and December 31, 2014, while Padilla was the secretary-treasurer and business manager of the Bakersfield office of a construction workers’ union, he embezzled approximately $168,780 from the union. He did this by writing unearned salary checks, unauthorized sick leave payments, and paying for personal expenditures on his union credit cards. Padilla used a signature stamp for the union president’s signature on the unauthorized checks and concealed the checks from the president. As part of the plea agreement, Padilla has agreed to pay $168,780 in restitution to the union.

This case is the product of an investigation by the United States Department of Labor. Assistant United States Attorney Angela Scott is prosecuting the case.

Padilla is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Lawrence J. O'Neill on July 10, 2017, at 10:00 a.m. Padilla faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.