Former Hoboken Housing Director, Assemblyman Carmelo Garcia Admits To Bribery

HOBOKEN, NJ — Hoboken's former director of human services who was later hired to run the city's public housing has pleaded guilty to a bribery scheme, the U.S. Attorney's Office said Thursday.

Carmelo Garcia, 49, of Hoboken, pleaded guilty to three counts of an information charging him with conspiracy to defraud the city of Newark and the Newark Community Economic Development Corporation (NCEDC), as well as honest services wire fraud and receiving bribes in connection with the business of a federally funded local government and organization.

Garcia had grown up in Hoboken and worked as the director of human services under Mayor David Roberts. He later ran the Hoboken Housing Authority, the federally funded agency that oversees the city's low-income and senior housing on the west side of town.

Garcia was also elected assemblyman for the 33rd District, which at the time included Hoboken and part of Jersey City.

Garcia was terminated at the HHA under Mayor Dawn Zimmer, and he subsequently accused her of "ethnic cleansing."

In Newark

Garcia went on to serve as deputy mayor and director of the Newark Department Economic and Housing Development (DEHD) and as executive vice president and chief real estate officer of the NCEDC – now known as Invest Newark.

Prosecutors said he admitted to conspiring with two Newark business owners to obtain corrupt payments intended to influence and reward him for assisting the business owners with the acquisition and redevelopment of various Newark-owned properties.

Thursday’s announcement had been in the works for more than three years. Charges were first announced against Garcia in 2020, and he was indicted in 2021. See Related: Ex-Assemblyman From Hoboken Accused Of Bribery Scheme In Newark

Prosecutors released the following allegations about the case:

“From 2017 through April 2019, while serving as a high-level Newark official, and prior to that, as an executive officer of the NCEDC (now known as Invest Newark), Garcia sought and received significant monetary payments and other benefits from Frank Valvano Jr., Irwin Sablosky, and others in exchange for Garcia’s use of his official positions and influence within the city of Newark and the NCEDC to advance real estate development matters of interest to Valvano and Sablosky. These matters included obtaining preliminary designation letters for Valvano and Sablosky and securing Newark-approved redevelopment agreements (RDAs) that allowed them to purchase and acquire various Newark-owned properties for redevelopment, and to ensure that Garcia did not use his influence and authority to act against their interests. In addition to cash, Garcia also received jewelry, including multiple high-end watches and chains, from Valvano and Sablosky’s pawnbroker and jewelry business.”

Prosecutors continued:

“Phone records and text messages obtained by law enforcement show extensive communication between Garcia, Valvano, Sablosky, and others throughout this period of time, including text messages in which Garcia arranged to personally collect cash provided by Valvano and Sablosky. In one instance, in June 2018, Garcia, then the city’s acting deputy mayor and director of the city’s DEHD, received an envelope containing $25,000 in cash, supplied by Valvano through an intermediary, in the restroom of a New Jersey restaurant.”

According to federal prosecutors, emails obtained by law enforcement show the official actions, assistance and influence that Garcia provided in exchange for the cash and other non-cash benefits from Valvano and Sablosky.

The honest services fraud conspiracy and honest services fraud charges in Counts One and Two each carry a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison. The bribery charge in Count Three carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. All charges are punishable by a fine of $250,000 or twice the amount of the pecuniary gain from the offense, prosecutors said.

As part of Garcia’s guilty plea, he agreed to criminal forfeiture of the $25,000 corrupt cash payment and administrative/civil forfeiture of the jewelry that he obtained from the scheme, prosecutors said.

Sentencing for Garcia is scheduled for Dec. 12.

Valvano and Sablosky’s case is pending, prosecutors said.

Patch Editor Eric Kiefer contributed reporting to this story.