Two Ex-Union Officials Charged in $350K Embezzlement Scheme
Former AFSCME Local 1746 leaders allegedly drained member funds via casino withdrawals and bogus checks over five years.
Federal prosecutors have charged two former officials of an Ohio public-sector union with wire fraud and conspiracy after a Department of Labor investigation found they allegedly siphoned roughly $350,000 from union members over a five-year span.
The charges, filed this month in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, name Pamela Brown, former president of AFSCME Local 1746, and Adelle Burrell-Williams, the local's former secretary-treasurer. According to court documents, the pair exploited their control over union finances from 2017 to 2022, using a union debit card to withdraw cash at casinos and writing unauthorized checks from the organization's operating account.
Read more SEC Commissioner Peirce Backs Retail Access to Private Markets →
Authorities also allege the two women took steps to conceal the theft, including generating false financial reports and failing to preserve required records — conduct that investigators say prolonged the scheme. The union, which represents approximately 1,200 workers at Cuyahoga County Health and Human Services, bore the full financial loss.
The case was developed by the Labor Department's Office of Labor-Management Standards in Cleveland. Prosecution is being handled by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Ohio. As principal officers, Brown and Burrell-Williams were legally responsible for safeguarding member funds, authorizing expenditures, and maintaining accurate financial disclosures.
The charges are allegations only, and both defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The DOL encourages anyone with knowledge of union fraud to report it by email at OLMS-Public@dol.gov or by calling the OLMS National Office at 202-693-0143. Continue reading at DOL News Releases and Briefs.
