Frankie Sanders thought he could fool his union. Instead, he made a fool of himself. And now he's facing civil and possibly criminal charges. On February 9, the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) filed suit in federal court against the former Houston-based union official charging that he had defrauded the union of more than $13,000. The APWU alleges Sanders, a business agent and regional coordinator, employed tactics of racketeering, deceit and breach of contract to disguise more than 20 acts of embezzlement for supposed union-related trips. Ed Gallagher, deputy criminal chief for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Houston, has asked the Labor Department and the Postal Service to conduct a criminal probe.
On May 2, Frankie Sanders, former Southern Regional Coordinator for the American Postal Workers Union, was sentenced in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas to 18 months in prison and three years of supervised release for claiming false travel reimbursements from the Houston-based labor organization during July 2003-May 2006. He also will have to pay $10,078.40 in restitution and a $100 special assessment. Sanders, who had been indicted in March 2010 for embezzling more than $13,000, pleaded guilty last November. The actions follow an investigation by the Labor Department's Office of Labor-Management Standards.
The days of "traveling" to New Orleans at union expense are over for Frankie Sanders. On November 15, Sanders, the former Southern Regional Coordinator of the American Postal Workers Union, was found guilty by a jury of embezzling $10,078 in funds from the Houston-based regional office. He had been indicted in March for embezzling $13,145.80 during July 2003-May 2006. Sanders allegedly had submitted more than 20 phony receipts from the Hilton Garden Inn New Orleans Airport to APWU national headquarters for wire transfer reimbursement. The indictment and guilty verdict follow an investigation by the U.S. Labor Department's Office of Labor-Management Standards.
