Former Boilermakers Business Manager Charged with Embezzling $1.5 Million, Income Tax Evasion

PITTSBURGH - An Information has been filed in federal court charging an Allegheny County resident with one count of embezzlement and theft of Labor Union assets and five counts of income tax evasion, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.

Raymond C. Ventrone, 59, of Pittsburgh, Pa. was the Business Manager of Local 154 of the International Association of Boilermakers from January 2010 to June 2015. According to the Information filed, during that time, Ventrone embezzled approximately $1,499,000 of union funds for his own use. In addition, Ventrone evaded payment of his income taxes on the embezzled monies.

The law provides for a maximum total sentence of not more than 30 years in prison, a fine of $1,500,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will depend upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant United States Attorney Nelson P. Cohen is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations, the Department of Labor-OIG and the Office of Labor Management Standards conducted the investigation leading to the information in this case.

A criminal Information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. The filing of an Information generally indicates that the defendant intends to enter a guilty plea.