On September 22, Rachetta Johnson and Charlene Monroe, co-owners of a contracting firm, Electrical Innovations, each were sentenced in Hamilton County, Ohio, Court of Common Pleas, to five years probation and 500 hours of community service for their roles in defrauding a market recovery fund of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 212. The fund assists union contractors in bidding for jobs against non-union contractors by enabling contractors to collect wage difference. Johnson and Monroe conducted an invoice overpayment scam. During July 2002-December 2003, they billed the local for hours that members hadn’t worked. Earlier in the month, the pair pleaded guilty to theft by deception. At their sentencing, the court also ordered them to pay $26,448 in restitution. Another defendant, Michael Griffie, has been charged with theft of at least $100,000 in property or services.
