Current:Home > MyA former NYC school food chief is sentenced to 2 years in a tainted chicken bribery case-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
A former NYC school food chief is sentenced to 2 years in a tainted chicken bribery case
View Date:2024-12-23 23:36:49
NEW YORK (AP) — The former head of food services for New York City public schools was sentenced to two years in prison on Monday for a bribery scandal that resulted in children being served chicken tenders contaminated with metal and bone.
Eric Goldstein, the former school food chief, was sentenced in Brooklyn federal court along with three men who ran a vendor that had contracted with the city to provide school food — Blaine Iler, Michael Turley and Brian Twomey. Iler was sentenced to one year and a $10,000 fine, Turley to 15 months and Twomey to 15 months and a $10,000 fine.
All four men were found guilty of bribery, conspiracy and other charges after a monthlong trial in 2023.
“Eric Goldstein corruptly abused his high-ranking position of trust as a public official and pursued lucrative bribes at the expense of school children, many of whom rely on healthy meals provided by the New York City Department of Education,” U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said in a statement.
Peace said Goldstein “prioritized lining his pockets with payoffs from his co-defendants” to ensure that the defendants’ food stayed in the schools even after plastic, bones and metal were found in the chicken.
Messages seeking comment were sent to attorneys for Goldstein, Iler, Turley and Twomey.
Goldstein oversaw school food as head of New York City’s Office of School Support Services from 2008 to 2018. Iler, Twomey and Turley had a company, SOMMA Food Group, that contracted with the city to provide school food.
Around the same time, the three men and Goldstein formed another company to import grass-fed beef. Prosecutors argued that the venture was a way to pay Goldstein off.
Prosecutors said the largest bribe payment was made in the fall of 2016 after the city school system had stopped serving SOMMA’s chicken tenders because an employee had choked on a bone in a supposedly boneless chicken tender.
According to prosecutors, Iler, Turley and Twomey agreed on Nov 29, 2016, to pay a bribe Goldstein had asked for, and one day later Goldstein approved reintroducing SOMMA’s chicken products into the schools. SOMMA’s products were served in schools until April 2017 despite repeated complaints that the chicken tenders contained foreign objects, prosecutors said.
veryGood! (7)
Related
- What is best start in NBA history? Five teams ahead of Cavaliers' 13-0 record
- Why Christine Quinn's Status With Chrishell Stause May Surprise You After Selling Sunset Feud
- Fish Species Forecast to Migrate Hundreds of Miles Northward as U.S. Waters Warm
- Chrissy Teigen Reacts to Speculation She Used a Surrogate to Welcome Baby Esti
- Medical King recalls 222,000 adult bed assistance rails after one reported death
- Tom Holland says he's taking a year off after filming The Crowded Room
- Climate Forum Reveals a Democratic Party Remarkably Aligned with Science on Zero Emissions
- Florida woman who fatally shot neighbor called victim's children the n-word and Black slave, arrest report says
- Sports are a must-have for many girls who grow up to be leaders
- Even remote corners of Africa are feeling the costly impacts of war in Ukraine
Ranking
- Daniele Rustioni to become Metropolitan Opera’s principal guest conductor
- Today’s Climate: August 6, 2010
- Antarctica Ice Loss Tripled in 5 Years, and That’s Raising Sea Level Risks
- In Georgia, Kemp and Abrams underscore why governors matter
- Beyoncé nominated for album of the year at Grammys — again. Will she finally win?
- Uganda ends school year early as it tries to contain growing Ebola outbreak
- Welcome to Plathville Star Olivia Plath's 15-Year-Old Brother Dead After Unexpected Accident
- Fish Species Forecast to Migrate Hundreds of Miles Northward as U.S. Waters Warm
Recommendation
-
Taylor Swift drops Christmas merchandise collection, including for 'Tortured Poets' era
-
Deli meats and cheeses have been linked to a listeria outbreak in 6 states
-
Today’s Climate: August 4, 2010
-
Indiana doctor sues AG to block him from obtaining patient abortion records
-
'Red One' review: Dwayne Johnson, Chris Evans embark on a joyless search for Santa
-
Joran van der Sloot, prime suspect in Natalee Holloway's 2005 disappearance, pleads not guilty to extortion charges
-
Hurricane Season 2018: Experts Warn of Super Storms, Call For New Category 6
-
Today’s Climate: August 13, 2010