Former Hudson County Executive Robert Janiszewski, who resigned a year ago during a federal investigation, will donate $709,000 in campaign contributions to a variety of charities as part of a plea bargain worked out with the authorities.
State Sen. Bernard Kenny, chairman of the Hudson County Democratic Organization, said last week that attorneys for the Democrats had confirmed the plea bargain deal.
Mike Druwniak, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s office in Newark, would not comment, on stories appearing in various daily newspapers discussing the plea bargain, except to confirm that an official from his office had been quoted. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ralph Marra had confirmed the deal with two daily newspapers two weeks ago but would not comment this past week. Marra reportedly said that Janiszewski may begin testifying for the feds as early as September.
Janiszewski resigned as county executive in late August, 2001, a few weeks after mysteriously disappearing. Reports indicated that federal authorities had been using him in a sting operation for about a year to try to snag local bigwigs. They were able to do this, according to reports, after reportedly taping Janiszewski allegedly taking a bribe from a vendor. In working with the feds for most of 2001, Janiszewski apparently wore a listening device while talking with vendors and officials, some of whom he is expected to testify against as part of his plea bargain.
Druwniak would not speculate on a specific date for Janiszewski to possibly plead guilty.
Numerous re-election accounts existed
Kenny, however, said the attorneys for the HCDO had confirmed that $709,000 of campaign contributions held by Janiszewski had been donated to charities as part of the plea bargain arrangement. According to Kenny, the $709,000 would be donated to a half dozen charities approved by the U.S. Attorney’s office.
"The U.S. Attorney’s Office has made the donation a condition of the plea bargain," Kenny said. "Janiszewski has agreed to relinquish the funds to accepted charities."
Kenny said that while local Democrats did not review the intended charities, he was confident in the review done by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
"We’re satisfied that the U.S. Attorney is satisfied," he said.
The money donated this week was from a personal re-election account. After Janiszewski’s resignation, several prominent Hudson County Democrats called for an accounting of campaign contributions he had collected over the years. Democratic Party members said Janiszewski maintained four accounts at the time of his resignation. One account was the official HCDO account. Another was a personal re-election fund. A third account was apparently controlled by Janiszewski’s wife, Marybeth.
Although some reports in daily newspapers claimed money was missing from the accounts, U.S. Rep. Bob Menendez (D-13th Dist.), who was county chairman last year when he called for the accounting, said no money was missing. The audit simply sought to determine which account had how much money.
Menendez called for the audit late in 2001 after several Democrats raised questions about what had come of money collected from several high profile fundraisers in 2001- including a $1,500 per ticket boat ride that featured then-gubernatorial candidate Jim McGreevey.
At one point, Al Chowanec, a long time Jersey City Democrat, threatened to sue to uncover the whereabouts of funds he helped raise at several events held at the Harborside in Jersey City. Chowanec claimed at the time that funders had been directed to make out checks to the Hudson County Community Fund (allegedly controlled by Marybeth Janiszewski) rather than the usual HCDO account. Democratic accountants later showed this account had about $200,000 in it at the time of Janiszewski’s resignation. The Janiszewskis started the community fund several years ago ostensibly to fund civic causes.
Getting ready for retirement
This same audit that Menendez called for last year showed that Janiszewski’s personal account had accumulated $709,000 – $250,000 of which had been transferred there from the HCDO account.
This personal account became the focus of the Democratic inquiry and the target of the U.S. Attorney’s investigation.
According to a source intimately involved with Janiszewski when the account was set up, Janiszewski feared a power struggle within the Democratic Party and wanted to maintain money independent of the HCDO.
"He saw what happened to Mayor Rudy Garcia when the party took control in Union City," this source said. "Bob didn’t want to lose control of the money he raised by keeping it all in the HCDO account."
The same source said Janiszewski had viewed this private re-election account as his retirement fund. Under state law, a candidate can keep the cash from such accounts after retiring from office.
"Bob hoped to raise as much as $1 million before he retired to a home in Florida," this source claimed.
The HCDO, according to Menendez, will seek to get back the $250,000. Menendez said the money was donated with the express purpose of supporting Democratic candidates for office – and he felt that’s what the money should be used for.
Money held in limbo for a year
After his resignation in 2001, Janiszewski apparently ordered the $709,000 transferred out of his personal account and into an unregistered charity called "Crossroads," where it remained in limbo during the months of plea bargain negotiations.
Bruce Goldstein, Janiszewski’s attorney, who was away on vacation last week, reportedly said Janiszewski had planned to donate these funds to charity from this account, despite the plea bargain agreement.
Although Kenny said he was satisfied with the plea bargain agreement, he did acknowledge concerns raised by several contributors, some of whom suggested Janiszewski had diverted checks made out to the HCDO to his personal account. If true, this could result in fraud charges against any lawyers or bankers involved in the diversion.
"The HCDO’s attorneys have looked into the matter and we have been led to believe that the U.S. Attorney’s Office has jurisdiction in the case," Kenny said. "We have heard some concerns. But we have not examined them. We do not know if the allegations are true."
Kenny said he believed it was time for the Democratic Party to move on, and leave the matter in the hands of the U.S. Attorney.