Bribery Scheme in West New York, New Jersey Exposed: Victor Coca Sentenced to 19 Months in Prison
NEWARK, N.J. – In a shocking display of corruption, Victor Coca, owner and president of a general contracting company in West New York, New Jersey, was sentenced to 19 months in prison for paying cash bribes to a local fire official to eliminate millions of dollars in outstanding fines and penalties on buildings with fire code violations.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court, Victor Coca, 50, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas to Count One and Count Two of an indictment charging him with paying bribes to a local government employee.
The scheme involved two buildings in West New York: one owned by a friend of Coca’s and another partly-owned by him. The first building had approximately $14,500 in fines and penalties for outstanding fire code violations, while the second building had more than $8.7 million in fines and penalties.
Coca agreed to pay a fire official for the West New York Bureau of Fire Prevention a $2,000 cash bribe to eliminate the outstanding fire code fines and penalties on the first building. On March 27, 2014, Coca handed the fire official a $2,000 cash bribe.
In the second instance, Coca paid a $5,000 cash bribe to the fire official in return for the fire official purportedly reducing the amount due to the West New York Bureau of Fire Prevention to the initial fine amount of $5,000.
Victor Coca is required to serve 19 months in prison and two years of supervised release. The investigation was led by special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Andrew Campi in Newark.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Agarwal of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.
Mandatory Facts:
1. Defendant/Respondent: Victor Coca
2. Exact Criminal Charges: Paying bribes to a local government employee
3. City and State: West New York, New Jersey
4. Exact Date: Not specified, but the bribe was accepted on March 27, 2014.
5. Sentence or Outcome: 19 months in prison and two years of supervised release
6. Dollar Amounts: $14,500, $8,700,000, $2,000, $5,000
Related Federal Cases
- William E Baroni Jr, Misuse of Government Property, New Jersey 2013 · Pennsylvania
- Mahmoud Thiam, Bribery and Money Laundering, New York 2024 · Washington
- Odebrecht S.A. and Braskem S.A., International Bribery Scheme, New … · Washington
- David Polos, Conspiracy and Making False Statements, New Jersey 2011 · Washington
- John C. Gallagher Jr, Bribery, New York 2017 · New Jersey
Key Facts
- State: New Jersey
- Category: Public Corruption
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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