Ex-UAW president pleads guilty to living high life on dues
DETROIT (AP) — A former president of the United Auto Workers pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiring with others to embezzle dues to pay for golf trips, expensive meals and stays at California villas — the most significant conviction yet in a scandal that has roiled the union.
Gary Jones, who appeared by video in federal court in Detroit, acknowledged that he falsified expenses from 2012 to 2017 when he was a regional UAW director in St. Louis. He was promoted to president in 2018 but quit after 17 months as the federal investigation intensified.
Ten union officials and a late official's spouse have pleaded guilty since 2017, although not all the crimes were connected. The first wave of convictions, which included some Fiat Chrysler employees, involved money from a Fiat Chrysler-UAW training center in Detroit.
Jones, 63, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy in the use of more than $1 million.
“I apologize to my UAW family for the betrayal of their trust and pray they'll forgive me,” Jones said in court, quoting the Bible as he also apologized to his family.
Guidelines call for a sentence of 46 to 57 months in prison. But Assistant U.S. Attorney David Gardey said the government could ask for a lighter punishment on Oct. 6 if Jones provides “substantial assistance,” a signal that investigators aren't finished.
The UAW, based in Detroit, has about 400,000 members and is best known for representing workers at Fiat Chrysler, General Motors and Ford Motor.
Jones and other officials set up accounts that were supposed to be used for legitimate union conference expenses in California. Instead, according to the government, they used the money to pay for “private villas, high-end liquor and meal expenses, golfing apparel, golf clubs and green fees.”
The UAW...