NYPost

UNION TO FACE MOB CHARGES OVER WTC By AL GUART

December 30, 2001 -- EXCLUSIVE

Cops say they are about to slap charges on up to 75 members of what they believe is a mob-tainted union preparing to muscle in on the rebuilding of damaged areas around ground zero, The Post has learned.

The FBI and Brooklyn U.S. attorney's office expect to arrest and charge officers and members of Local One of the International Union of Elevator Constructors within weeks, law-enforcement sources said.

They also will push to have a court-appointed monitor oversee the local, which has been under suspicion for more than four years. Cops say some members of the local have doled out no-show jobs to union cronies and members of two Mafia crime families.

Union members of Local One specialize in building, maintaining and running temporary construction elevators. The personnel and equipment elevators will be required on the rebuilding of damaged high-rises around ground zero - and the feds want to stop any corrupt members of the local from illegally lining their pockets or inflating construction costs in the disaster area.

"It's a big concern," one fed told The Post. "There's a lot at stake financially, not to mention morally.

"How could anyone stomach lowly, greedy acts on hallowed ground?"

The names of those facing indictment were not revealed. The union would not comment.

Four Local One members were busted in September 1999 on mail-fraud charges for allegedly taking no-show checks - but in an unusual move, the feds dismissed charges while retaining the right to reinstate them later.

Among those charged was Terence Carr, the son-in-law of union president John Green.

In 1997 and 1998, Carr clocked 32-hour days at different locations around the city and took no-show paychecks in his own name, according to court records obtained by The Post.

Carr is now in Florida, working as an organizer for the local's parent group. He did not return calls seeking comment.

The feds also busted Local One members Leonard Capozzoli, Frank Walker and Thomas McCarthy, who were paid for numerous 25-hour days, the records show.

The four allegedly ripped off several big-name construction firms, the records show. At least one of those companies is helping to clean up the trade center site.

The Post found a number of mob relatives on the union roster, including Joseph Gotti, a nephew of jailed-for-life Gambino boss John Gotti.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Alonso declined to comment.

-- Anonymous, December 30, 2001

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if ever anyone deserved to be in the WTC...

-- Anonymous, December 30, 2001