5 Indicted in Bribery, Embezzlement Case
A county grand jury has indicted three Los Angeles Unified School District maintenance workers and two painting contractors on 20 felony charges for allegedly taking bribes and embezzling thousands of dollars in federal and school repair funds.
A sixth defendant is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, said Thomas Krag, a deputy Los Angeles County district attorney. He declined to provide a name or say whether the person is a contractor or an LAUSD employee.
Four of the five defendants pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges ranging from accepting cars and boats from painting contractors in exchange for bids, to approving payment for uncompleted work at several San Fernando Valley and Harbor-area schools.
The 10-page indictment named LAUSD employees Billie Joe Simily, 59, of Pasadena; Richard Steinfeld, 53, of Apple Valley; Charles Cline, 60, of Baldwin Hills; and contractors Damianos Hadjidamianou, 42, of North Hills and Panagiotis Adamopoulos, 38, of Northridge.
An arrest warrant was issued for Hadjidamianou, who remains at large, said Victoria Pipkin, a spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office. The other four defendants were released on their own recognizance.
The alleged crimes occurred between 1995 and 1997.
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