Ex-L.A. City Official, 2 Others Arrested in Building Permit Bribery Investigation

A former Los Angeles city public works commissioner and longtime building inspector has been arrested with two other men on suspicion of soliciting and accepting a $1,500 bribe from a contractor in exchange for a building permit, police said Friday.

Alerico Ortega, 64, served as an appointee of former Mayor Sam Yorty on both the Board of Public Works and the anti-poverty Economic and Youth Opportunities Agency board.

After what police said was a tip from a contractor, Ortega was taken into custody last week with fellow city Department of Building and Safety Inspector Robert Dille, 58, of Midway City, and Henry Wilson, 62, of Los Angeles. Police described Wilson as the go-between who picked up the alleged payoff from the contractor to speed the permit process for a project under construction.

According to Lt. Fred Reno of the Los Angeles Police Department Bunco Detail, the unidentified contractor went to police “after he encountered some suspicious circumstances while attempting to gain a building permit.” Reno added: “It sounded like bribery was involved.”

Detectives said they heard and saw the passing of the bribe money on March 6 at a prearranged meeting place in the 1100 block of West 1st Street. Wilson allegedly handed the contractor the permit he sought and was arrested immediately.

Dille was arrested the next day, and Ortega was arrested on March 8, police said.

The three were jailed and released on bail of $3,000 each. Reno said formal complaints are expected from the district attorney’s office next week.

Both Dille and Ortega were placed on two-week vacation while the Building and Safety Department conducts its own investigation.

Ortega was an administrative coordinator on Yorty’s staff when he was appointed to the Board of Public Works in January, 1967. He returned to his old job as building and safety inspector in 1973 after Tom Bradley became mayor.

Police asked that anyone seeking building permits who may have been approached about possible bribes call the bunco detail at 485-3795 weekdays or 485-2504 nights and weekends.