Jan. 23, 2018—A former Fiat Chrysler executive pleaded guilty Monday in a massive scandal involving $4.5 million in illegal cash and gifts that also involved senior officials of the United Auto Workers union, the Detroit Free Press reports.
In a plea deal, former Fiat Chrysler labor-relations chief Al Iacobelli will get a maximum net sentence of eight years in exchange for his guilty plea to conspiracy and tax evasion charges. The sentence could be reduced when he is sentenced in May.
The scheme transferred money under the table from the UAW-Chrysler Training Center to UAW recipients.
Another of the alleged co-conspirators—Monica Morgan, widow of former UAW vice president and Chrysler unit head General Holiefield—is expected to plead guilty to charges in the scandal. Both Iacobelli and Morgan previously pleaded not guilty.
The conspiracy amounts to one of the largest scandals ever to mar the reputation of the UAW, just as union leaders fight losses of organizing drives last year at auto plants in the South and as they prepare for their big convention in June in Detroit to elect new leaders.
