Former North Bergen Parks and Recreation Commissioner Peter Perez was supposed to appear in U.S. Federal Court last week to receive his sentencing after pleading guilty last July to federal corruption charges. However, the sentencing has been delayed.
Perez was a two-term member of the Board of Commissioners who resigned his seat on the board after pleading guilty to receiving more than $26,000 in cash payments and personal home improvements from an air conditioning and heating contractor who did work for the township.
Perez was one of several town officials who were charged in a corruption investigation last year, including former city business administrator Joe Auriemma, former assistant public safety director Vincent Zappulla and former MUA purchasing agent Joseph Hernandez. All four were alleged to have had illegal involvement with an air conditioning and heating contractor, named in some records as Leonard Farinola, the owner and operator of Fresco Air Systems, Inc. of Ridgefield.
However, the sentencing of Perez, 41, has been delayed because he is apparently cooperating with the federal officials involved in the ongoing investigation, sources said. According to two sources close to the investigation, Perez and his attorney, Andrew Jacobs of Chatham, agreed to cooperate with the investigators in return for a lenient sentence.
But while Perez has agreed to cooperate with the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s investigators, there were reports last week alleging that perhaps the information Perez was supposed to produce is not what investigators were looking for.
Alleged anti-Sacco comment doesn’t hold up
A source close to the investigation said that Perez did not provide law enforcement officials with promised information against North Bergen Mayor Nicholas Sacco. One source, who asked to remain anonymous, said that when asked to cooperate, Perez told investigators that he could “hand you Sacco.”
No information involving any wrongdoing has ever been produced against Sacco, and there are apparently no leads in the case pointing to Sacco in any fashion as yet.
The source said that the information that Perez provided was “misleading and in some cases, totally false.”
“He’s really taken us on a different road that doesn’t seem to exist,” the source said. “Or he’s taken us on a path that we either already traveled or knew existed. In that respect, what [Perez] has provided hasn’t been much of a help.”
Thus, the apparent reason for the delay in sentencing.
Neither Perez nor Jacobs returned phone calls by press time.
The source said that the investigators have given Perez another chance to produce “substantial evidence, concrete evidence,” or face having the plea bargain deal reworked with a stiffer consequence.
“He must have thought he could tell [the investigators] anything and they would buy it,” the source said. “These people are not stupid. They know what they’re looking for.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Clark refused to comment on the rumors about Perez and his cooperation, but said that the delay in sentencing is “not uncommon in cases like this.”
“The investigation is not completed yet and it is ongoing,” Clark said of the probe, which celebrated its year anniversary last Monday.
Perez faces to five years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 when the sentencing takes place in front of U.S. District Judge Joseph A. Greenaway, Jr. No new date has been set for Perez’ sentencing.
Nature of the charges
The probe began in December of 2001 when FBI agents raided Town Hall and the offices of the Municipal Utilities Authority, as well as selected homes of town officials, looking for evidence.
When Perez decided to plead guilty in July, he admitted that while serving as a commissioner, he accepted free work to his house and cash payments from the heating and air conditioning vendor.
Farinola was not named in Perez’ case, but was identified in Auriemma’s indictment and has been identified by Zappulla’s attorney, Sam DeLuca, as well as township officials. Farinola is rumored to be cooperating with federal officials in regards to the investigation.
At the time of his guilty plea, Perez also admitted intentionally concealing his receipt of the free work and cash by failing to disclose them on financial disclosure statements which were filed with the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, pursuant to the local government ethics laws. Thus, the charge of federal mail fraud that Perez was hit with.
Perez specifically admitted that in November 1995, the vendor provided a $7,000 bathroom renovation at his North Bergen home. He further admitted that in 1997, the vendor provided additional renovations to the kitchen, bedrooms, a bathroom, and a hallway, with a total value of approximately $15,700.
Perez also admitted taking cash payments ranging from $500 to $2,000 – for a total of approximately $3,300 – on a number of occasions from 1995 to 1998.
While running the Department of Parks and Recreation, Perez had responsibility for the upkeep of town buildings, including maintenance and repairs on heating, ventilation, and air conditioning equipment in town facilities.
The vendor who provided the free renovations and cash payments to Perez operated HVAC and construction businesses over which Perez maintained decision-making authority, including the approval of payments to the vendor in question.