Leader of California's Largest Union Alma Hernandez Arrested on Charges of Tax Fraud, Embezzlement Charges
The leader of the largest union in California was arrested on Friday, a day after authorities filed charges of tax fraud and embezzlement against the prominent activist.
Alma Hernandez, Husband, Charged with Tax Fraud, Embezzlement
According to the U.S. News, the executive director of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) California Alma Hernandez and her husband Jose Moscoso were charged on Thursday after allegedly underreporting some $1.4 million of income, which started from the 2014 and 2018 tax years.
Based on another complaint, Hernandez allegedly approved an $11,700 payment to her husband for services he did not provide while working on a political action committee for a Democratic state senate candidate in 2014.
Hernandez's husband, Moscoso, also allegedly did not disclose that his air duct cleaning business had multiple employees. The non-disclosure of the exact numbers resulted in over $300,000 in unreported wages. Moscoso owned LA Duct Cleaning LLC.
California Union Leader's Camp Denies Allegations
The couple's attorney, Jeffrey Tsai, did not respond to questions asked by reporters outside of the Sacramento County courthouse, The Sacramento Bee reported. However, in a statement Thursday, Tsai said his clients were looking forward to defending themselves and their names. Tsai added that their camp disagreed with the charges in this case. The attorney also said that true facts were misrepresented, which were supposed to reflect their hard work to make an honest life for themselves and their family.
Moreover, Attorney General Rob Bonta charged Hernandez and her husband on October 4 with five felony counts of filing false tax returns, allegedly underreporting their income by about $1.4 million over five years.
Based on the report of Times of San Diego, the website of the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office showed that the prominent activist leader was being held at The Sacramento County Main Jail. The document online also stated that Hernandez was ineligible for bail.
Meanwhile, SEIU California said that Hernandez, the 42-year old prominent activist, who had led the union for 11 years, had resigned.
Bob Schoonover, the president of SEIU California State Council, shared in a statement that they were deeply concerned regarding the allegations against Alma Hernandez. Schoonover stated that they had accepted Hernandez's resignation, and they have cooperated fully with authorities regarding the investigated matter and would continue to comply.
Furthermore, the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office's website did not immediately list Hernandez's husband Moscoso as an inmate.
On the other hand, the SEIU is the largest healthcare union in North America, with more than 1.1 million members. Over 700,000 of its members were situated in California, who work in a broad range of fields and include social workers, janitors, and doctors.
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This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written by: Jess Smith
WATCH: Head Of California's Largest Labor Union Facing Embezzlement Charges -CBS Los Angeles
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