NEW YORK CITY — Six Con Edison inspectors have been busted for taking bribes and fudging records as part of an ongoing city investigation, officials said.
The city's Department of Investigation began probing corruption at Con Edison about two years ago, and so far six inspectors in Manhattan and The Bronx have been arrested for accepting bribes in exchange for expediting work or not performing inspections, according to officials and court documents. They have all been fired, officials said.
DNAinfo New York previously reported that three Con Ed workers were arrested on Dec. 3 in the utility’s headquarters at 4 Irving Plaza, but officials said this week that three additional employees have been arrested this year as part of the investigation.
William Cruz, 48, a Con Ed inspector in Manhattan, was the first to get caught. He was arrested on July 14 and charged with commercial bribery, a felony, for accepting $1,000 in bribes over the course of a year, according to a criminal complaint from the Manhattan District Attorney's office.
John Furia, a 45-year-old Con Ed inspector in The Bronx, was arrested Dec. 3 for taking three $200 bribes on different days, according to the complaint from the Bronx District Attorney’s office.
On May 10, 2013, Furia pocketed $200 in exchange for not doing a final inspection on a residential building at 1930 Grand Concourse, according to the complaint. Furia then filed a “daily call sheet” with Con Ed, stating he had performed the inspection when he hadn’t, the complaint states.
The owner of the property did not respond to phone calls.
Furia is also accused of accepting two $200 bribes on Nov. 25 and Nov. 27, 2014 in exchange for fast-tracking the installation of gas meters in a residential building at 1077 Teller Ave., prosecutors said.
The landlord of the building, who declined to reveal his name, said he knew nothing about the bribes.
Furia was charged with commercial bribery, a misdemeanor, and falsifying business records, a felony. He pleaded not guilty, according to his attorney Brian Pakett.
"My client is an extremely hardworking man," Pakett noted.
Bronx Con Ed inspector Michael Barbera, 40, was also arrested on Dec. 3 for accepting a $200 bribe, in return for expediting the installation of a gas meter at 1077 Teller Ave. on Nov. 27, the Bronx DA said. He was charged with commercial bribery.
Barbera is denying the allegations, according to his attorney, James Kilduff.
“He did not commit or do anything wrong,” said Kilduff. “He is looking forward to his day in court.”
DNAinfo previously reported that Con Ed inspectors Thomas Lloyd, Danny Cruz and Robert Tarter were also arrested on Dec. 3 and charged with accepting $200 bribes.
The attorneys for Lloyd, Danny Cruz and Tarter did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Information regarding William Cruz’s lawyer was not immediately available.
A spokesman for Con Edison said the utility was the one who approached the Department of Investigation to begin the corruption probe.
"When we discovered this behavior, we immediately brought it to the attention of law enforcement," Con Ed said in a statement.
The DOI declined to comment, saying the investigation is still ongoing.
