Donald Bernard Sr., Bribery, New Jersey 2014

Former Newark Watershed Official Admits to Brazen Bribery Scheme

A former high-ranking employee of the Newark Watershed Conservation and Development Corp. (NWCDC) has admitted to accepting $956,948 in kickback payments for his and the former executive director’s assistance in awarding work to contractors.

Donald Bernard Sr., 68, of West Orange, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Jose Linares in Newark federal court to Counts 9 and 10 of a 20-count indictment returned in December 2014, charging him with the use of interstate facilities to promote and facilitate bribery in violation of the Travel Act, and Count 1 of an information that charges him with making and subscribing a false personal tax return for the 2009 tax year.

Bernard served as a consultant to the NWCDC (from 2008 to January 2010) and then as a salaried employee (from January 2010 to March 2013). From 2008 to March 2013, Bernard was part of a corrupt arrangement with former NWCDC Executive Director Linda Watkins Brashear to solicit $956,948 in cash kickbacks from certain NWCDC contractors in exchange for providing them work and other assistance.

Bernard admitted receiving $409,823 in bribes and kickbacks from Porter’s companies, funded by inflated and fraudulently obtained payments from the NWCDC, during the period January 2008 to December 2012. He also admitted receiving approximately $85,000 from Essex Home Improvements, a contracting company operated by DeRosa, during the period January 2008 to March 2013.

Bernard also admitted filing a U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, Form 1040, for tax year 2009, which did not include approximately $314,000 in unreported income he received in kickbacks.

The scheme involved several contractors, including Jim P. Enterprises and New Beginnings Environmental Services, both companies hired to perform landscaping, snow removal, clean-up and sign-posting services.

Bernard’s guilty plea marks the latest development in a years-long investigation into corruption at the NWCDC, which has resulted in the convictions of several individuals, including former Executive Director Linda Watkins Brashear and contractor James Porter.

Mandatory Facts:

• Defendant: Donald Bernard Sr.
• Criminal Charges: Use of interstate facilities to promote and facilitate bribery in violation of the Travel Act, making and subscribing a false personal tax return for the 2009 tax year.
• City and State: Newark, New Jersey
• Exact Date: December 2014
• Sentence: Guilty Plea
• Dollar Amounts: $956,948, $409,823, $85,000, $314,000

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