NYC Hotel Trades Council Faces Corruption Claims Over Millions in Income and $3 Million Lease Loss
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jul 6
NYC Hotel Trades Council Faces Corruption Claims Over Millions in Income and $3 Million Lease Loss
1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jul 6
Summary
Union sources told Fox News Digital that a whistleblower letter alleging corruption inside New York’s Hotel Trades Council is backed by firsthand accounts and documents, with President Richard Maroko accused of misusing millions in retail income.
The allegations describe gifts from hotel executives, unusual access for management figures inside union offices, and labor deals that allegedly favored hotel owners by carving out union jobs and shifting hundreds of millions of dollars in economics.
Maroko also faces claims that he let HTC rent Local 6 property at below-market rates—costing up to $3 million in revenue—and that former Highgate executive Robert Lafferty later received a Health Benefit Fund job paying more than $650,000.
The union denies wrongdoing and says two outside-led investigations, including one by a former federal prosecutor, found no evidence beyond permissible items such as a pie or pastries and concluded the claims were frivolous.
No criminal charges or independent legal findings have validated the accusations so far, though a hotel industry group has retained former federal corruption prosecutor Brendan McGuire to examine the whistleblower letter.