Suffolk County District Attorney James M. Catterson, Jr. announced action in two cases, including guilty pleas by a leading Suffolk County Garbage Carting company and Ralph Garofalo to carting related and prevailing wage crimes and the County’s first indictment in a prevailing wage case. The common theme in both cases is New York State’s prevailing wage laws which require contractors of public projects to pay the prevailing wage, including wages, overtime and benefits to the employees who work on public projects.

In one action, District Attorney Catterson announced a 160-count indictment charging Trade Wind Plumbing, Inc., and two of the corporation’s principals Douglas Ryan, 60, and his wife, Carolann Ryan, 59, a.k.a. Carolann Battilana, both of 70 Jackon Place, Massapequa, New York on prevailing wage and other charges. It is alleged that between January 1, 1998 and May 25, 2000, Trade Wind Plumbing, Inc bid and was awarded contracts for plumbing on public works projects, but did not pay workers the prevailing wage as required by state law and the contracts. The investigation revealed that certified payrolls and check stubs were falsified to hide violations of the prevailing wage law. The public works contracts awarded to Trade Wind Plumbing, Inc. included the Suffolk County Water Authority, the Terryville Fire District, the Melville Fire District, the Huntington Library District, as well as the Amityville, Bay Shore, Connetquot, East Hampton, Eastport, Huntington, Longwood, Northport, Port Jefferson, and West Islip School Districts. It is alleged that the employees of Trade Wind Plumbing, Inc. are owed approximately $779,000 in wages and supplements. The following chart summarizes the charges.

District Attorney Catterson also announced that Ralph Garofalo, 44, of 45 Westcliff Drive, Huntington, New York pled guilty to a Superior Court Information on Wednesday to one count of Scheme to Defraud 1^st Degree, a Class E felony, and one count of Willful Failure to Pay Prevailing Wages and Supplements, a misdemeanor, before Suffolk County District Court Judge Joseph Farneti in Riverhead. Judge Farneti scheduled sentencing for November 21^st. As part of his guilty plea, Garofalo is expected to be sentenced to 1 ½ to 3 years in state prison, is to be fined $500. Since Garofalo has a 1991 conviction of Grand Larceny 2^nd Degree, his is considered a predicate felony offender. Garofalo Carting, Inc., located at 926 Crooked Hill Road, Brentwood, pled guilty to the identical charges and also pled guilty to five counts of Operating a Solid Waste Facility Without a Permit. Sentencing is also scheduled for November 21^st. Under the plea, Both Ralph Garofalo and the are also responsible for paying $300,000 restitution to the laborers as part of a settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor and Garofalo Carting, Inc. is expected to be fined $25,000 for operating the waste facility. Amaya Martinez, an employee of Garofalo Carting, Inc., also pled guilty to one count of Scheme to Defraud 2^nd Degree, a misdemeanor. He is expected to be sentenced to three years probation.

The charges stem from a general investigation began by the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office in October of 1998 into the garbage carting practices prevailing in Suffolk County’s towns. With the assistance of the Smithtown Department of Public Safety, the investigation revealed that Garofalo Carting, Inc. was operating an illegal transfer operation that was the subject of a consent decree by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. It was also learned that the corporation was mixing residential garbage with construction and demolition materials before delivering the garbage to the Town of Smithtown’s Resource Recovery facility. In doing so, it avoided paying fees to landfills where these materials are required to be dumped. In the course of the investigation, it was also learned that Garofalo Carting, Inc. employees were not be paid the prevailing wage. An inquiry to the U.S. Department of Labor also determined that this agency had an ongoing investigation into the employment practices of the corporation.

In commenting on today’s actions, District Attorney Catterson thanked the United States Department of Labor, New York State Department of Labor, the Town of Smithtown and the investigators and Assistant District Attorneys involved in the cases and noted that the Garofalo case helped illustrate "how criminal often violate varied and far reaching aspects of the criminal law in their efforts to get rich at others’ expense." He went on to say that "protecting Long Island’s labor force and the hard-working men and women of Suffolk’s labor community is a tremendous responsibility for this office. Insuring that workers receive a fair wage for a fair day’s work is an integral part of the American dream. Today’s announcements send a send a strong message to those who would violate the rules whose purpose is to protect workers and make it possible that they can one day see their dreams become reality."