A Newark businessman pleaded guilty to bribing former Deputy Mayor Carmelo Garcia, also former Hoboken assemblyman, shortly after his sentencing was postponed by several months.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
Frank Valvano, Jr., 57, of Florham Park, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Madeline Cox Arleo in Newark federal court to two counts of an indictment charging him with honest services fraud and bribery, U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger announced this monring.
“As he admitted in court, Frank Valvano, Jr. provided cash, jewelry, and other benefits to a public official in exchange for the official’s use of his influence to further Valvano’s private business interests, defrauding the people of Newark of their right to the official’s honest services,” Sellinger said in a statement.
“He corrupted the public official’s independent judgment and violated the public trust for his own financial gain. Our office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to make sure that the people of New Jersey are protected from public officials whose greed overrides their sworn duty to serve the people and from the individuals who bribe those officials.”
Valvano admitted bribing Garcia – who served as deputy mayor and director of the Newark Department of Economic and Housing Development (DEHD) and executive vice president and chief real estate officer of the Newark Community Economic Development Corporation (NCEDC) – in exchange for his assistance with the acquisition and redevelopment of city-owned property, according to court documents.
From 2017 through April 2019, Valvano, Irwin Sablosky, and others provided significant monetary payments and other benefits to Garcia while he was serving as a high-level Newark official, and prior to that, as an executive officer of the NCEDC (now known as Invest Newark), in exchange for Garcia’s use of his official positions and influence.
These matters included obtaining preliminary designation letters for Sablosky and Valvano and securing Newark-approved redevelopment agreements (RDAs) that allowed them to purchase and acquire various Newark-owned properties for redevelopment, and to ensure that Garcia did not use his influence and authority to act against their interests.
In addition to cash, Valvano and Sablosky also gifted Garcia jewelry, including multiple high-end watches and chains, from their pawnbroker and jewelry business. They also paid for Garcia’s expenses on a trip to Miami, Florida.
Phone records and text messages obtained by law enforcement show extensive communication between Garcia, Valvano, Sablosky, and others throughout this period of time, including text messages in which Garcia arranged to personally collect cash provided by Valvano and Sablosky.
In one instance, in June 2018, Valvano and Sablosky, through an intermediary, supplied Garcia, then the city’s acting deputy mayor and director of the city’s DEHD, $25,000 in cash as part of the stream of bribes provided to Garcia in the restroom of a restaurant.
The Travel Act charge in Count 19 of the indictment carries a maximum potential penalty of 5 years in prison.
The bribery charge in Count 26 carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. All charges are punishable by a fine of $250,000 or twice the amount of the pecuniary gain from the offense. Valvano’s sentencing is scheduled for April 16th, 2025.
Valvano originally was charged by indictment in October 2021 with Sablosky, 64, of Springfield, and Garcia, 49, of Hoboken.
Garcia previously pleaded guilty in June to conspiracy to defraud the city of Newark and the NCEDC of Garcia’s honest services, honest services wire fraud, and receiving bribes in connection with the business of a federally funded local government and organization and is awaiting sentencing.
He was scheduled to be sentenced before Cox yesterday at 11 a.m., but his court document was updated in the early afternoon to indicate that the proceeding had been moved to April 15th at 2 p.m.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office did not return an email or multiple calls seeking comment, nor did the court docket provide any explanation for the last minute change. Garcia received 20 continuances in the case prior to pleading guilty.
Sablosky previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to honest services wire fraud and bribery and is awaiting sentencing.
Sellinger credited special agents of the FBI’s Newark Field Office, special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, and special agents of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, with the investigation leading to today’s plea.
The government is represented by Elaine K. Lou, Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division, and Katherine J. Calle and Edeli Rivera of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Special Prosecutions Division.
Can this POS just go to jail where he’s belonged for like the last 15 years??????
Well, I hear you, but I smell you.
Please appointment this man to the vacant 6th Ward council seat. He is actually quite smart and effective when he wants to be, and it’s not like there’s any bar these days when it comes to people with checkered pasts serving in public office.
We can do a lot worse, honestly. And if you don’t agree with me, you are not an intelligent person.
You are not an intelligent person
You want a convicted bribe-inducing criminal representing the sixth ward neighborhood from federal prison? Would he call in via Zoom for council meetings? Yeah, you’re exceedingly intelligent.
Carmelo and Leo bump into one another in the halls of the Fed?
What’s in the Old Hoboken Water pipes?
Wonder if Garcia will hand up any of his former best Republican friends?