Pleasantville BOE Adams & Velez Guilty in Attempted Extortion

Published Oct. 23, 2007

Former Pleasantville Board of Education president Jayson G. Adams and
Pleasantville Board of Education member Rafael Velez pleaded guilty today to attempted
extortion, both admitting that they accepted bribes from an undercover insurance brokerage
company and a cooperating roofing company in return for their official assistance in steering
public contracts to the companies, U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie announced.

Jayson Adams, 27, and Rafael Velez, 46, both pleaded guilty to separate one-count criminal
Informations charging attempted extortion under color of official right before U.S. District
Judge Jerome B. Simandle. Under the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Adams faces a
probable range of between 63 and 78 months in federal prison. Velez’s faces probable
range of between 37 and 46 months in federal prison.
Adams and Velez both are free on $200,000 bond pending their sentencings, which are
scheduled for Feb. 1.

Adams and Velez were arrested on Sept. 6, along with nine other public officials and one
private citizen which resulted from a public corruption investigation that progressed from
southern to northern New Jersey.

At his plea hearing, Adams admitted that he accepted numerous corrupt payments totaling
approximately $62,200 between May 2006 and October 2006. Adams admitted that during
this time period he also agreed to accept corrupt payments in the form of a share of the profits
generated by the insurance brokerage business as a result of contracts obtained from the
Pleasantville Board of Education (PBOE).

Adams also admitted arranging corrupt payments for other public officials in Pleasantville and
elsewhere in return for steering insurance and roofing contracts to the businesses. Adams was
present on May 24, 2006, when Maurice “Pete” Callaway, 53, a fellow member of the PBOE,
accepted a corrupt payment of $10,000 from a cooperating witness in exchange for his official
assistance in obtaining roofing work from the PBOE.

On Sept. 6, 2006, Adams identified five members of the PBOE, including himself, who he
would distribute corrupt payments to in exchange for their vote on a resolution to award an
insurance contract to an insurance brokerage business, he admitted. Prior to that date, Adams
admitted that he promised that in exchange for voting to award the insurance contract to the
brokerage business, Rafael Velez, Maurice Callaway, James Pressley and James McCormick
would receive corrupt payments.

On Sept. 12, 2006, as a consequence of the corrupt agreement, Adams admitted that he and
the four other PBOE members voted to pass the resolution authorizing the insurance contract
for the brokerage.
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At Velez’s plea hearing, he admitted that he had agreed to accept corrupt payments of $15,000
in exchange for his support of PBOE contracts with the insurance brokerage business and the
roofing business. Velez admitted that on Sept. 12, he and four other members of the PBOE
voted to pass a resolution authorizing the insurance brokerage business to provide insurance
services. On Sept. 28 Velez accepted a corrupt cash payment of $4,000 in exchange for
voting for the insurance contract, he admitted. At that time, he solicited additional corrupt
payments, he admitted.

As part of their guilty pleas, Adams and Velez agreed to forfeit $62,200 and $4,000,
respectively.

The charge to which Adams and Velez pleaded guilty carries a maximum statutory penalty of
20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. However, in determining an actual sentence, Judge
Simandle will consult the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide appropriate
sentencing ranges that take into account the severity and characteristics of the offense, the
defendant's criminal history, if any, and other factors, including acceptance of responsibility.

The judge, however, has wide discretion and is not bound by those guidelines in determining a
sentence.

Parole has been abolished in the federal system. Defendants who are given custodial terms
must serve nearly all that time.

Christie credited Special Agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge
Weysan Dun, for the investigation against Steele and the other defendants. He also credited
for their assistance in the investigation prosecutors and investigators with the Atlantic County
Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Theodore F.L. Housel.
The cases against Steele and the other defendants are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S.
Attorneys David Bocian and Christopher J. Gramiccioni.

Steele Pleads Guilty to Corruption

Published Oct. 23, 2007

Former state Assemblyman Alfred E. Steele pleaded guilty today to
attempted extortion, admitting that he accepted a total of $15,500 in bribes from an
undercover insurance brokerage company in return for his official assistance in steering
public contracts to the company, U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie announced.
Steele, 53, pleaded guilty to a one-count criminal Information charging attempted
extortion under color of official right before U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson.
Under the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Steele faces a probable range of between
37 and 46 months in federal prison.

Steele remains free on $200,000 bond pending sentencing.
Steele was arrested on Sept. 6, along with 10 other public officials and one private citizen.
Following his arrest, Steele resigned both his seat in the Assembly and his job as a
Passaic County undersheriff.

Steele admitted today that between March and August this year, he accepted cash
payments totaling $15,500 in exchange for agreeing to use his official influence to assist
in steering government insurance brokerage contracts to the FBI undercover company.

He also admitted that, in return for his assistance in securing contracts for the company,
he would receive a portion of the insurance brokerage’s revenue.

Steele admitted that he arranged and attended meetings between representatives of the
FBI undercover company and public officials within his legislative district and in other
municipalities. Among them, he said, were meetings with officials from the Paterson
School District, the Paterson Housing Authority and City of Passaic and City of Orange.

In return for his assistance to the FBI undercover company, Steele accepted corrupt cash
payments, as described in detail in the Information, as follows:

• April 2, in Newark, $5,000, to use his official influence to assist the company in
securing contracts with the Paterson School District.

• May 16, in Paterson, $1,500, to use his official influence to assist the company in
securing contracts with the Paterson Housing Authority.

• May 24, in Orange, $1,500, to use his official influence to assist the company in
securing contracts with the City of Orange.

• July 9, in Newark, $1,500, to use his official influence to assist the company in securing
contracts with the City of Newark.
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• Aug. 2, in Passaic, $1,500, to use his official influence to assist the company in
securing contracts with the Paterson School District.

• Aug. 13, in Clifton, $3,000, to use his official influence to assist the company in
securing contracts with the Newark Board of Education and City of Passaic.

• Aug. 20, in Elizabeth, $1,500, to use his official influence to assist the company in
securing contracts with the City of Orange.

The charge to which Steele pleaded guilty carries a maximum statutory penalty of 20
years in prison and a $250,000 fine. However, in determining an actual sentence, Judge
Thompson will consult the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide
appropriate sentencing ranges that take into account the severity and characteristics of the
offense, the defendant's criminal history, if any, and other factors, including acceptance of
responsibility. The judge, however, has wide discretion and is not bound by those
guidelines in determining a sentence.

Parole has been abolished in the federal system. Defendants who are given custodial
terms must serve nearly all that time.

Christie credited Special Agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in
Charge Weysan Dun, for the investigation against Steele and the other defendants. He
also credited for their assistance in the investigation prosecutors and investigators with
the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Theodore F.L.
Housel.

The cases against Steele and the other defendants are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S.
Attorneys David Bocian and Christopher J. Gramiccioni.

Pete Callaway Guilty in BOE Bribe Case

Published Nov. 1, 2007

CAMDEN – Former Pleasantville Board of Education member Maurice “Pete” Callaway
pleaded guilty today to attempted extortion, admitting that he accepted bribes, through
intermediaries, from a cooperating roofing business and an undercover insurance
brokerage company in return for his official assistance in steering public contracts to the
companies, U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie announced.

Callaway, 53, pleaded guilty to a one-count criminal Information charging attempted
extortion under color of official right before U.S. District Judge Jerome B. Simandle.
Under the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Callaway faces a probable range of
between 37 and 46 months in federal prison. Callaway is free on $200,000 bond pending
his sentencing, which is scheduled for Feb. 15.

Callaway’s arrest on Sept. 6, 2007, along with nine other public officials and one private
citizen, resulted from a public corruption investigation that progressed from southern to
northern New Jersey.

“As this case moves forward, it is plainly clear that the Pleasantville Board of Education
was about as corrupt a government body as I’ve ever seen,” said Christie.

At his plea hearing, Callaway admitted that between May 2006 and September 2006 he
accepted corrupt cash payments of $10,000, $1,500 and $1,500 for his support of
Pleasantville Board of Education (PBOE) contracts with an insurance brokerage business
and a roofing business.

Callaway admitted that on May 24, 2006, in Egg Harbor Township, he directed an
individual to accept a $10,000 corrupt payment from a cooperating witness in exchange
for his official assistance in obtaining roofing work from the PBOE. Callaway admitted
that he was present when the cooperating witness gave the individual the $10,000 payment
and that he ultimately received the payment. Callaway also admitted that he had
previously solicited the corrupt payment with the assistance of fellow school board
member Jayson G. Adams, 27.

Callaway admitted that on June 5, 2006, he directed Louis Mister, 57, of Pleasantville, to
accept two separate corrupt cash payments of $1,500 from a cooperating witness on
Callaway’s behalf. Callaway admitted that the money was paid to him, through Mister, in
exchange for his official assistance in attempting to secure roofing work from the
Pleasantville Board of Education for a roofing business.

Mister was also arrested and charged with Callaway and the other public officials on Sept.
Furthermore, Callaway admitted that on Sept. 12, 2006, as part of a corrupt agreement, he
and others voted to pass a resolution authorizing the undercover insurance brokerage
business to provide brokerage services to the PBOE. Callaway admitted that his vote in
favor of the resolution was made in exchange for corrupt payments to be received through
Adams from a cooperating witness.

As part of his guilty pleas, Callaway agreed to forfeit $13,000, which he had received in
corrupt payments.

The charge to which Callaway pleaded guilty carries a maximum statutory penalty of 20
years in prison and a $250,000 fine. However, in determining an actual sentence, Judge
Simandle will consult the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide appropriate
sentencing ranges that take into account the severity and characteristics of the offense, the
defendant's criminal history, if any, and other factors, including acceptance of
responsibility. The judge, however, has wide discretion and is not bound by those
guidelines in determining a sentence.

Parole has been abolished in the federal system. Defendants who are given custodial terms
must serve nearly all that time.

Christie credited Special Agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in
Charge Weysan Dun, for the investigation. He also credited for their assistance in the
investigation prosecutors and investigators with the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office,
under the direction of Prosecutor Theodore F.L. Housel.

The cases against Callaway and the other defendants are being prosecuted by Assistant
U.S. Attorneys David Bocian and Christopher J. Gramiccioni.

Local Radio Host Duped by FBI Informant
John D'Angelo

By VIRGINIA McCABE
Published Sept. 9, 2007

A local radio show host has been duped by an long-time informant for the FBI. Harry Hurley has stated on his website that he introduced John D'Angelo to the FBI and worked to fight corruption on the Pleasantville School Board. Not true, like so many other people in D'Angelo's wake, he duped Hurley into providing positive news coverage to cover his checkered and sordid past.

D'Angelo has been a creature of the FBI dating back to the early 90s and the G-Tech lottery bidding investigation where the severed head of a pig was found in Rosa Narkunski 's automobile.

In a 2001 consensually-taped interview with this reporter, D'Angelo extensively detailed his cooperation with the FBI. He claimed credit for working with Atlantic City Attorney George Miller in the G-Tech case that sent Steven D'Andrea to federal prison for 18 months. He provided court documents that substantiated his claims.

"The judge said I was a model citizen," said D'Angelo during the interview. He handed this reporter the supposed letter from the judge, however the paper was not a letter and it did not contain a statement praising D'Angelo. It was a sheet of paper from the volumes of documents D'Angelo gave to this reporter.

D'Angelo surfaces in Galloway Township

Beginning in 1999, D'Angelo falsely accused elected officials in Galloway Township of ethics violations, which were extensively investigated and dismissed by the Division of Community Affairs. His chief targets were then Mayor Kathy Stiles and Councilwoman Meg Worthington. His remarks at the October 14, 1999 planning board meeting were so disturbing to the women, they obtained the tape of the meeting. Stiles planned to meet with the police.

Despite two bankruptcies, and a $122,000 judgment against him from his former business partners, Abe Narkunski, Ethan Rosen and Chris Clayton, D'Angelo created a political group called "Citizens for Change."  In October 2001 D'Angelo claimed at a council meeting that he had 1,500 members in his group and $25,000 in the bank. The claims were false, he had less than 10 members and $25 in the bank.

He falsely claimed there was corruption in the Galloway Police Department. He claimed there were improper accounting methods in the Galloway Township Police Athletic League (PAL) and the Galloway Township Athletic Association (GTAA).

At this time Township Manager Tom Henshaw called area editors and invited them to do an investigative report on the allegations made against township officials. At that time, this reporter was assigned to do an investigative report on Galloway Officials and Citizens for Change. Henshaw told one editor he was concerned about the impact on volunteers in the athletic associations and the appearance of impropriety that D'Angelo was alleging.

In November 2001, a man who called himself Roy Winkworth, a friend of D'Angelo's, called Hurley's radio station. The taped conversation shows that Winkworth claimed there is corruption in the Galloway Police Department. In December of the same year, Winkworth held a fund raiser at his home, formally owned by Roger Wagner, and billed Assemblyman Frank Blee as the keynote speaker. The event was poorly attended and Blee never showed up at the event.

In January 2001, D'Angelo requested a meeting with Galloway Township Manager Tom Henshaw to discuss alleged ethics violations of the township council. Henshaw met with D'Angelo in the presence of Galloway Police Detective Pete Romanelli, who is now the acting chief of police. The meeting dissolved into a shouting match and D'Angelo claimed that a news crew from NBC40 was on their way to city hall. Henshaw contacted the station and was told they had no idea what D'Angelo was talking about.

On January 17, 2002 D'Angelo sent a press release out to media on Citizen's for Change letter head pretending to be Galloway resident Robert Iannacone, treasurer of the organization. The release attacked Henshaw and again claimed ethics complaints would be filed. D'Angelo signed Iannacone's name on the release. Iannacone told reporters he never wrote or signed the release, he was out of town at the time.

Henshaw told members of the press that D'Angelo was no standard bearer for fiscal responsibility because he owed $25,000 in back taxes on his home in Galloway Township. This led to D'Angelo taking out a full page ad in a local newspaper attacking this reporter.

On January 18, 2002 the Galloway Township Solicitor sent D'Angelo a letter telling him he had contacted Melanie Campbell and Frank Brady at the Attorney General's office and asked them to investigate any claims that D'Angelo made against the government entities he was naming in his press releases. No wrong doing was found by the Attorney General's Office.

Councilwoman Meg Worthington was often at the heart of D'Angelo's attacks and she went to the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office and the local police department to find out information on filing a stalking complaint against D'Angelo. She was given information on stalking and kept an extensive file.

Members of the PAL and GTAA responded to D'Angelo's allegations of sketchy accounting at their functions and wrote letters to area media. The community backlash against D'Angelo was severe and on Jan. 24, 2002 D'Angelo announced the break up of Citizens for Change.

On March 12, 2002 D'Angelo filed an amendment to his bankruptcy plan to include the back taxes owed on the home.

On April 19, 2002 D'Angelo told members of PAL that background checks should not be conducted on its coaches because coaches might have information in their backgrounds they don't want public. D'Angelo was taking a lead position in fund raising for PAL.

On June 6, 2002, D'Angelo placed a full-page ad in the newspaper for a baseball game at the Surf Stadium. The ad was paid for by D'Angelo and Silver Fox Tours. On June 13, 2002 another ad is placed. The entire event was cancelled the day before the game. The day after he the cancelled the game, D'Angelo resigned his position as Finance Chairman for the PAL.

On the same day D'Angelo resigned as Finance Chairman of PAL, he sent out faxes stating he was involved in a new business selling subleases for the new Eagle's stadium. He also announced a new partnership

In June it came to light that Galloway Councilman Al DeSimone and D'Angelo's families opened a business in Galloway called Baskets Galore. D'Angelo sent a lavish gourmet gift basket to this reporter, which was politely refused and sent to the local hospital following the policy of not accepting gifts in my job as a reporter.

Like so many of D'Angelo's ventures, this business is now defunct.

D'Angelo had no record of voting in Galloway Township for the period he lived there, approximately nine years. When this reporter asked if D'Angelo had a criminal background, he refused to answer the question.

On June 25, D'Angelo again met with Henshaw and the township solicitor. He apologized to Henshaw for causing trouble and informed Henshaw that D'Angelo's private investigators found nothing on Henshaw. During the bizarre meeting, D'Angelo said that all he wanted was peace, but his private investigators are still going to follow up on other township officials. There was no proof that anybody worked for D'Angelo as a  private investigator. D'Angelo was shown the door in under five minutes. D'Angelo refused to identify who he hired as private investigators to this reporter.

A public search of D'Angelo's two companies at the time, Worksite Solutions and eBenetec showed that WorkSite Solutions did exist, but he was no an officer of the organization. eBenetec was listed on his bankruptcy petition stated his wages came from D.E. Foreign, LLC.  The State of New Jersey no longer lists the business in their system and they did not report a filing for 2001 and the taxes were not paid. The business address was listed at 319 Chris Gaupp Road in Galloway. No such company existed there unless he was sharing office space with another business.

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Harry Hurley Falsely Claims Credit
for Pleasantville School Board Investigation by FBI

Their investigation predates involvement by Hurley

Radio Talk Show Host Harry Hurley has claimed on his website that he was instrumental in helping the government crack the corruption case against the Pleasantville Board of Education and that he introduced John D'Angelo to the FBI.

People caught up in Operation Steal Pier reported to the FBI the corruption on the board of education. The FBI then set up companies and John D'Angelo became operative.

Hurley was contacted after that process was completed, according to official sources connected to both investigations.

In the last year, Hurley did have conversations with the FBI and provided information on an issue, according to an agent working on the case.