Former Bakersfield Union Officer Sentenced To 21 Months For Embezzlement

Bakersfield, Calif. —Edward Padilla, 56, of Bakersfield, was sentenced today to 21 months in prison for his embezzlement of union funds, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

Chief U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill also ordered Padilla to pay $168,780.22 in restitution to the union.

According to court documents, from at least September 2012 to on or about December 31, 2014, while Padilla was the Secretary Treasurer/Business Manager of the Bakersfield office of a construction workers’ union, he embezzled approximately $168,780.22 from the union in the form of unearned salary checks, unauthorized sick leave payments, and personal expenditures on his union credit cards.

This case was the product of an investigation by the United States Department of Labor, Office of Labor-Management Standards. Assistant United States Attorney Angela Scott prosecuted the case.