Local corruptionThese ongoing federal arrests involving corruption by New York-based state lawmakers got me scratching my head trying to recall if there were past similar scandals in this area.
The most recent I could remember involved Rotterdam Supervisor Jim Constantino, who ran the town from 1984 to 1997. In 2002, he was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to extortion charges.
An FBI investigation determined Constantino shook down $8,000 from William M. Larned & Son Inc., a Rotterdam excavation firm that often did no-bid emergency work for the town. According to the federal indictment, Constantino threatened to withhold town contracts from Larned Inc. unless he was paid off by the company.
While covering Rotterdam, I had confronted Constantino about reports he was shaking down firms doing business with the town. He jumped up and down denying the accusations. Ultimately, the feds proved otherwise.
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