Penfield Man Pleads Guilty To Perjury For Lying Under Oath In George Moses Investigation

ROCHESTER, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Francis Cardinell, 77, of Penfield, NY, pleaded guilty before Chief U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford to perjury by materially inconsistent statements, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles M. Kruly, who is handling the case, stated that George Moses, former chairman of the board of the Rochester Housing Authority, was convicted and sentenced to serve 78 months in prison for defrauding three organizations, including the Rochester Housing Charities. In April 2019, Cardinell, owner of Akwasasne Construction, a general contracting firm in Rochester, was interviewed as a witness in connection with the investigation. When asked about a $63,000 contract for boiler work to be performed by his company at the Rochester Housing Charities, Cardinell advised that he paid a cumulative amount of more than $20,000 in cash to Moses as kickbacks related to this contract. Cardinell also stated that he gave Moses $14,000 in cash out of a payment of $28,000; $7,500 in cash out of a payment of approximately $18,000; and another $3,500 in cash out of an $8,000 payment he received, for a total of approximately $25,000 in kickbacks. However, during the federal trial of George Moses, while under oath on the witness stand, Cardinell testified on cross-examination that he had lied about the kickback scheme and that he never made payments to Gorge Moses in exchange for contracts for his company.

The plea is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Miraglia, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Christina D. Scaringi, and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Thomas Fattorusso, Special Agent-in-Charge.

Sentencing is scheduled for December 18, 2023, before Judge Wolford.      

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