Ex-MTA Official Accused of Ethics Violation
The state political watchdog agency Tuesday accused a former top administrator at the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority of violating state conflict-of-interest laws.
Filiberto Martinez, the MTA’s former acting director of internal audits, was accused of failing to disclose that Adboul Sesay made nearly $23,000 in payments on a Mercedes leased by Martinez. Sesay is the former risk manager of MTA’s construction division who has pleaded guilty to bribery charges.
The Fair Political Practices Commission alleged that Martinez failed to disqualify himself after an audit found that Sesay accepted gifts from an MTA contractor. It also was alleged that Martinez failed to disclose Sesay’s illegal activities to MTA management.
Wayne Ordos, a former FPPC executive director who is Martinez’s attorney, said his client denies the allegations. Ordos noted that the Mercedes was used by Sesay, not Martinez, who signed his name on the lease to help a friend who was experiencing credit problems.
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