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Former NYC DOE Official and Three Others Charged with Extortion Conspiracy and Bribery
A complaint was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging Eric Goldstein, the former Chief Executive Officer of the New York City Department of Education’s (“NYC DOE”) Office of School Support Services (“OSS”), Blaine Iler, Michael Turley, and Brian Twomey with conspiring to commit extortion under color of official right and solicitation and giving of bribes relating to programs receiving federal funds.
Goldstein was arrested this morning, made his initial appearance this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Lois M. Bloom and was released on a $150,000 bond. Turley was arrested in Arkansas this morning and will make his initial appearance in the Western District of Arkansas tomorrow. Iler and Twomey will make their initial appearances in the Northern District of Texas this afternoon.
“Goldstein is alleged to have abused his position as a senior executive with the Department of Education by soliciting and accepting thousands of dollars in bribes for pure financial gain. In exchange, Goldstein’s co-conspirators obtained lucrative contracts to provide food services that consisted of substandard products that were served to students, teachers and staff in public schools.” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis.
As alleged in the complaint, from 2008 to 2018, Goldstein was the Chief Executive Officer of OSS. In that role, Goldstein was the NYC DOE senior executive in charge of overseeing the management, budget and operations of several NYC DOE departments, including the Office of Food and Nutrition Services, also known as SchoolFood, which is responsible for managing the food service operations for all New York City public schools.
Between 2015 and 2016, Goldstein, while he was head of OSS, together with Iler, Turley and Twomey formed and operated a grass-fed beef importation business called Range Meats Supply Co., LLC (“RMSCO”). During the same time, between 2015 and 2016, Goldstein used his official position within SchoolFood to ensure that the food products promoted and sold by the Food Service Company would be purchased by SchoolFood and served in New York City public schools.
In one instance alleged in the complaint, in October 2016, SchoolFood stopped serving the Food Service Company’s chicken tenders after a NYC DOE employee choked on a bone that had not been removed from a chicken tender supplied by the Food Service Company. Goldstein, who had final approval as to whether and when the chicken tenders would be allowed back in schools, delayed approving the reintroduction of the tenders until Iler, Turley and Twomey agreed to transfer the Food Service Company’s ownership interest in RMSCO to Goldstein.
Defendant: Eric Goldstein | Charges: Conspiring to commit extortion under color of official right and solicitation and giving of bribes | City and State: Brooklyn, New York | Date: 2023 | Current Status: Released on $150,000 bond | Dollar Amounts: Tens of thousands of dollars transferred to RMSCO |
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Public Corruption
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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