Seven people have pled guilty and three have pled not guilty in connection with the July 23 arrests of 44 religious leaders and public officials resulting from the federal government’s dual investigation of public corruption/money laundering.
There are 35 people who still have not entered a plea – one of whom will never have the chance.
Jack Shaw, a Jersey City political consultant, was found dead on July 28 at his apartment on Warren Street in downtown Jersey City. At the time, some said the death was a suicide, and police began investigating. There were rumors that pills were found near his body. He also had been known to have medical problems, including diabetes.
“It is not beyond the pale.” – Edward DeFazio
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The Regional Medical Examiner’s Office in Newark already performed the autopsy, but as a policy, the office does not reveal the results or answer any questions regarding autopsies. Instead, the results are sent to the county prosecutor where the deceased resided.
According to Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio, the autopsy had not come into his office as of last week. He said the public should not be surprised it has taken so long.
“It is not beyond the pale,” DeFazio said. “[The Prosecutor’s Office] has seen situations like this where it has taken a long time to perform an autopsy.”
DeFazio said in Shaw’s case, it isn’t the cause so much as the manner of death that may be the reason the Medical Examiner’s Office is taking so long.
“They want to make sure that they are completely satisfied in that they have all the information as to the manner of death,” DeFazio said.
When asked if the delay in the autopsy results was due to federal investigation, DeFazio said it was not.
According to police, Shaw, 61, was found by a relative around 5 p.m. in his ninth-floor apartment in the Portside Towers, a rental building.
Shaw had been charged with taking $10,000 for himself from the government’s cooperating witness, Solomon Dwek, and allegedly proposing to Dwek that he pay $10,000 in campaign contributions for the re-election campaign of Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy. Healy has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
Some have said that Shaw had been pressured to testify against other officials in the county. Also there was speculation that he was questioned by federal agents the day before the arrests.
Why was Kenny not arrested on July 23?
Meanwhile, questions remain about another person who has been arrested as a result of the FBI sting – but months after everyone else was.
On Oct. 6, in U.S. District Court in Newark, newly-elected Jersey City Councilman Phil Kenny pled guilty to taking $5,000 in bribes from the government’s “cooperating witness,” developer Solomon Dwek, allegedly in exchange for Kenny’s influence after he got elected.
The day after he entered his guilty plea, Kenny resigned from his Ward B council seat, representing the city’s west side.
This 45th case in connection with the sting was a surprise to many observers. Kenny is currently free on a $50,000 bond pending his sentencing date, which is scheduled for Jan. 12, and he faces a sentence of up to 24 months.
So how did Kenny avoid being led out in handcuffs by federal agents?
Michael Weinstein, a Hackensack attorney who once served in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington D.C. for six years, said recently that Kenny was probably approached by federal agents in the days before the arrests and asked to cooperate and provide information on others who were involved in the bribe-taking from Dwek, in exchange for being allowed to plead guilty without being publicly arrested. However, this is just speculation. Kenny’s attorney, Samuel Sachs of East Windsor, could not be reached by press time.
Ricardo Kaulessar can be reached at rkaulessar@hudsonreporter.com.