The new chief of staff for retiring Assemblyman Bob Reilly was accused in an International Brotherhood of Teamsters report of embezzling and inappropriately spending about $8,000 of his union’s money.
Oswald Martucci, the former secretary-treasurer and principal officer of Local 669, has been brought on to serve Reilly, D-Colonie, until the end of 2012. After an IBT hearing this spring, Martucci was ousted for two years from the union as the result of accusations that he embezzled $6,184 from February 2006 to May 2010 and failed to submit receipts for $1,950 in travel expenditures from July 2010 to August 2011.
Local 669, which was located in Albany, was swallowed up by a larger local union that had been temporarily put in charge of Local 669 while Martucci was under investigation.
Reilly said he was aware of the accusations when he decided to hire Martucci. Reilly contended that the allegations essentially stemmed from a failure to keep proper receipts. Based on his understanding of Martucci’s circumstances, he added, “I don’t think the word should be embezzlement. I don’t consider it an embezzlement.”
The chief-of-staff vacancy was created recently when Albany County Legislator Tim Nichols left the job to run to replace Reilly. He is currently one of four Democratic candidates vying for the seat.
While noting that no criminal charges have been brought against Martucci, Reilly acknowledged that some people do feel public servants should be held to a higher standard, but also noted that there aren’t any good government groups or aspiring politicians decrying his hire.
He added that he’s not in a position to judge the guilt or innocence of Martucci.
The Dec. 22, 2011, IBT report against Martucci highlighted financial control problems that included alleged submission of false receipts and billing the local twice for the same expense.
Categories: Schenectady County
