Steven M. Lukach, Jr., Mail Fraud, Pennsylvania 2020

Schuylkill County Corruption

SCRANTON, Pennsylvania - Former Schuylkill County Clerk of Courts Steven M. Lukach, Jr. has been sentenced for his crimes.

Lukach, age 70, of Nesquehoning, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 27 months in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Robert D. Mariani for mail fraud and falsification of records.

The total $40,000 was misappropriated by Lukach, who served as the Clerk of Courts for Schuylkill County for approximately 27 years.

The case began when county auditors with the Controller’s Office began an in-depth examination of the Clerk’s Office in 2013-2014.

During the audit, Lukach interfered with the audit by stealing mail sent to banks, forging records, and sending fake bank records to the Controller’s Office.

Lukach used the stolen funds for his own personal purposes, including paying a family member’s credit card bill, paying for meals, making car payments, and other personal expenses.

Judge Mariani characterized Lukach’s crimes as an abuse of power and trust given to him by the people of Schuylkill County and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

The judge noted that Lukach’s crimes were not a one-off event but pervasive theft over years from many different aspects of the criminal justice system.

Judge Mariani also ordered Lukach to pay $15,927 in restitution and to surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on November 17, 2020.

The case was investigated by the Pennsylvania State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Consiglio prosecuting the case.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-mdpa/pr/former-schuylkill-county-clerk-courts-sentenced-mail-fraud-and-falsification-records