Performing Attorney Standard Andrew J. Bruck introduced that an lawyer was sentenced now for her function in a scheme involving illegal use of straw donors to conceal marketing campaign contributions and secure lucrative govt contracts for her regulation company.
Elizabeth Valandingham, 49, of Morristown, N.J., was sentenced now to 3 years’ probation and 324 hours of community services by Outstanding Court docket Choose Robert Hanna in Morris County. The condition suggested that Valandingham be sentenced to 364 times in the county jail pursuant to the plea settlement, but the courtroom did not impose that sentence. She pleaded guilty on April 13, 2021 to an accusation charging her with third-degree tampering with community information or data. Underneath the plea settlement, she forfeited her legislation license and was ordered to spend a $75,000 general public corruption profiteering penalty. She also is debarred from any public contracts for a interval of 10 decades.
Deputy Lawyers General John A. Nicodemo, Eric Cohen, and Michelle McBrian represented the Lawyer General’s Office of General public Integrity and Accountability (OPIA) at the sentencing hearing. She was billed in an investigation by the OPIA Corruption Bureau.
In pleading guilty, Valandingham admitted that she submitted fraudulent proposals for federal government contracts for the law agency where she worked, O’Donnell McCord, P.C., in which she unsuccessful to disclose political contributions that were being illegally made applying straw donors. She even further admitted that she submitted phony stories to the New Jersey Election Regulation Enforcement Fee (ELEC) on behalf of the regulation agency in which she failed to report this kind of unlawful contributions. Valandingham was at first billed by criticism-summons on June 17, 2020.
“Those who have interaction in illegal schemes to evade our marketing campaign finance and shell out-to-play regulations will be held accountable,” said Acting Lawyer General Bruck. “We are unable to tolerate any endeavor to undermine reasonable and open elections and general public contracts in New Jersey.”
“OPIA is functioning to implement a society of integrity in condition and area authorities in New Jersey, and that consists of safeguarding our election process and public contracting from criminal behavior,” said OPIA Government Director Thomas Eicher. “This case displays our dedication to prosecute dishonest operators who find to profit at the expense of fantastic government.”
Valandingham was billed in link with conduct that transpired among 2012 and 2017. 1 of her obligations at the regulation company was to prepare and post once-a-year proposals to municipalities for the legislation company to garner public contracts for legal providers.
OPIA has a toll-free Tipline 1-844-OPIA-TIPS for the general public to report corruption. The AG’s Office environment has an Anti-Corruption Reward Software that gives a reward of up to $25,000 for tips foremost to a conviction for a criminal offense involving general public corruption. Facts is posted at: http://nj.gov/oag/corruption/reward.html.
(Visited 729 times, 8 visits nowadays)
Click in this article for the complete Insider Index