Former New York City Department of Education Senior Official and Three Others Charged with Extortion Conspiracy and Bribery | USAO-EDNY

A complaint was unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn today that included Eric Goldstein, former chief executive officer of the New York Department of Education’s Office of School Support Services (“NYC DOE”), Blaine Iler, Michael Turley and Brian Twomey the conspiracy to extort under the guise of official law; and the solicitation and delivery of bribes in connection with programs that receive federal funding. Goldstein was arrested this morning, appeared for the first time before US Judge Lois M. Bloom this afternoon, and was released on $ 150,000 bail. Turley was arrested in Arkansas this morning and will make his first appearance in the Western District of Arkansas tomorrow. Iler and Twomey will be making their first appearances in the Northern District of Texas this afternoon.

Jacquelyn M. Kasulis, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Michael J. Driscoll, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), announced the arrests and charges.

“Goldstein allegedly abused his position as an executive with the Department of Education by soliciting and accepting thousands of dollars in bribes for sheer financial gain. In return, Goldstein’s co-conspirators received lucrative contracts to provide food services consisting of inferior products that were served to students, teachers, and public school staff, ”said acting US Attorney Kasulis. “This agency and its law enforcement partners are committed to upholding the integrity of government contracts and will not tolerate corruption that affects the quality of the food served in New York City public schools.”

“As claimed, Goldstein used his position within the DOE to promote a business in which he had a financial interest, which is not only illegal but also does not allow for a fair bidding process between competing interests. As a result of that plan, Goldstein – and his co-conspirators – learned a lesson of their own today about what not to do with taxpayers’ money, ”said FBI assistant chief Driscoll.

As alleged in the complaint, Goldstein was OSS Chief Executive Officer from 2008 to 2018. In that role, Goldstein was the chief executive of the NYC DOE, responsible for overseeing the management, budget, and operations of several NYC DOE departments, including the Office of Food and Nutrition Services, also known as SchoolFood, which is responsible for administration the hospitality business is responsible for all public schools in New York City. Iler, Turley and Twomey were the founders and operators of a food service company (the “Food Service Company”) that sold food products to retail and food service markets, including schools.

Between 2015 and 2016, while Head of OSS, Goldstein co-founded and operated a grass-fed beef import company called Range Meats Supply Co., LLC (“RMSCO”) with Iler, Turley and Twome. At the same time, between 2015 and 2016, Goldstein used his official position at SchoolFood to ensure that the food advertised and sold by the Food Service Company is purchased by SchoolFood and served in New York City public schools. In return, Iler, Turley, and Twomey transferred tens of thousands of dollars to RMSCO on behalf of Goldstein, including a payment of $ 7,000 to Goldstein’s personal divorce attorney and a transfer of $ 3,000 to a close relative of Goldstein’s.

In one case alleged in the complaint, SchoolFood stopped serving the Food Service Company’s chicken tenders in October 2016 after an NYC DOE employee choked on a bone that did not remove it from a chicken tender supplied by the Food Service Company had been. Goldstein, who had final approval on whether and when the chicken offerings may be allowed back into schools, delayed approving the reintroduction of the offerings until Iler, Turley and Twomey agreed to transfer the ownership of the Food Service Company in RMSCO to Goldstein as well To transfer $ 66,670 to a bank account on behalf of RMSCO that Goldstein opened and controlled. After weeks of negotiations, on November 29, 2016, Iler, Turley and Twomey agreed to pay the bribe that Goldstein had asked, and a day later, on November 30, 2016, Goldstein approved the reintroduction of the Food Service Company’s chicken products into schools . The products were served in schools until April 2017 when, after repeated complaints from students and staff that the chicken tenders continued to contain foreign objects such as plastic, metal, and bones, SchoolFood decided to remove all food from the Food Service Company from New York Public Schools the city.

The charges in the lawsuit are allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The government’s case is handled by the Office’s Public Integrity Department. Prosecutors Robert Polemeni and Laura Zuckerwise lead the indictment.

The defendants

ERIC GOLDSTEIN
Age: 53
New Rochelle, New York

BLAINE ILER
Age: 34
Dallas, Texas

MICHAEL TURLEY
Age: 51
Fayetteville, Arkansas

BRIAN TWOMEY
Age: 48
Dallas, Texas

EDNY file number 21-MJ-1102

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