ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — A man is charged with obstruction of justice and lying under oath during the George Moses investigation, federal officials announced Monday.
Former chairman of the board of the Rochester Housing Authority George Moses was recently sentenced to serve 78 months in prison for defrauding three organizations, including the Rochester Housing Charities.
76-year-old Francis Cardinell — Penfield resident and owner of general contracting firm Akwasasne Construction — was interviewed on two separate occasions as a witness throughout the investigation by the FBI.
Officials say when asked about a contract for boiler work in the amount of $63,000 to be performed by his company at the Rochester Housing Charities, Cardinell allegedly said he paid a cumulative amount of more than $20,000 in cash to Moses as kickbacks related to his contract.
A few weeks later, Cardinell said in another interview he gave Moses $7,500 in cash out of a total $21,800 received from the Rochester Housing Charities. In interviews following that, Cardinell stated that he paid Moses three separate kickbacks totaling $25,000.
While under oath during Moses’s trial, Cardinell testified that he lied about the kickback scheme and never made payments to Moses in exchange for contracts for his company. He later told federal investigators he was spiteful of Moses for troubles he was having as a contractor, and that was the reason he fabricated these allegations.
The charges Cardinell faces carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.