Thread: Retired president of Border Patrol union indicted (updated)

Retired president of Border Patrol union indicted

Associated Press – 9 mins ago

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The retired, longtime president of the National Border Patrol Union was indicted Thursday for diverting thousands of dollars in union funds for personal use, federal prosecutors said.

The U.S. Attorney's Office in San Diego said in a statement that a grand jury charged T.J. Bonner for conspiracy, fraud and other counts.

The indictment says Bonner used the position he held for more than two decades to obtain payment for supposedly union-related work and travel that were in fact personal.

"These false claims included periods of time when Bonner was actually visiting his mistress in Chicago or family members, as well as trips to attend non-union activities such as hockey games and other sporting events," the indictment says.

Retired president of Border Patrol union indicted - Yahoo! News

Why did they wait until AFTER he retired to go after him?

Trumped charges? This should be interesting ..

Local news says the union didn't beome aware that he was stealing union money until he left and wasn't there to keep people from checking the books.

Retired President of Border Patrol Union Indicted



By By ELLIOT SPAGAT Associated Press
SAN DIEGO August 17, 2012 (AP)

Terence J. Bonner, who led the union representing Border Patrol agents for more than two decades until his retirement last year, was indicted by a federal grand jury Thursday on charges of diverting hundreds of thousands of dollars in union funds for personal use.

Bonner, president of the National Border Patrol Council for 22 years starting in 1989, is accused of submitting expense vouchers for meals, car rentals, luggage, books and other union-related activities when he was traveling for personal reasons.

The false claims cover periods when he was visiting his mistress in Chicago, his family, hockey games and other sporting events unrelated to the union, the indictment says.

"Siphoning hundreds of thousands of dollars from hard-working Border Patrol agents, many of whom put their lives on the line every day to protect this country, is a particularly troubling form of corruption that must be addressed," said Laura Duffy, the U.S. attorney in San Diego.

Bonner, 59, did not immediately respond to phone messages to his office and pager.

George McCubbin, who succeeded Bonner as union president, said the alleged corruption was limited to Bonner.

"Obviously this is going to be a black eye on our organization. For years we were always above any of this. It's clear this is an isolated incident," McCubbin told The Associated Press. "There are no other union officers involved. This is strictly on T.J."

McCubbin said the union's executive board learned about the investigation in April 2010. Bonner retired from the Border Patrol a month later after a 33-year career with the agency, and the union allowed him to continue serving as president until his two-year term expired in March 2011.

Bonner submitted six years' worth of travel expenses to the government at the end of 2009 and filed a grievance when the Border Patrol refused to pay, McCubbin said.

"The agency said this doesn't smell right, and that's when they started their investigation," he said.

The indictment says Bonner worked with an alleged conspirator who served as the union's secretary treasurer from 1978 to last year but does not name the person. Mark Conover, an assistant U.S. attorney, said the person has not been charged and declined to comment further on whether there are other targets.

Bonner, a San Diego-area resident widely known as T.J., has been a fixture on cable television and in congressional hearings. News reporters often turned to him for pithy quotes on border security issues even after he retired.

He was the union's voice at a time when the agency saw enormous growth to more than 20,000 agents and erected hundreds of miles of fencing and other barriers.

Retired President of Border Patrol Union Indicted - ABC News

Very sad to hear this news and would not be surprised to learn the charges are being trumped up to offline TJ Bonner during Obama's amnesty decree. The timing of these charges is very suspicious.

W

Federal grand jury indicts retired Border Patrol union president on fraud, conspiracy charges - CBS News

Former Union Leader Misused Funds: Attorney

By Sarah Grieco

| Thursday, Aug 16, 2012 | Updated 5:30 PM PM

A retired president of the National Border Patrol Union was indicted on federal charges of using hundreds of thousands of dollars in union funds for personal use, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Terence Bonner allegedly diverted thousands of dollars in union funds for personal use.

The indictment accuses Bonner of using union dues while he was in charge to do things such as visit his mistress in Chicago or attend hockey games and other sporting events.

He held his position for more than 20 years.

Charges include conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and forfeiture of ill-gotten gains in connection with a scheme to defraud some 14,000 dues-paying union members.

In addition, the indictment alleges that Bonner submitted expense vouchers seeking reimbursement for union-related travel expenses such as meals, car rentals, tips, luggage, books and magazines -- when he was traveling for personal reasons, including vacations and other non-union activity.

According to the indictment, Bonner used his position to enact a number of unusual policies to benefit himself and other union officials, such as reimbursement for clothing expenses and up to $800 a year for gifts.

During his tenure, Bonner initiated a policy requiring the union to pay premium rates for work completed on Sundays, holidays and night shifts. But the indictment states Bonner allegedly submitted false claims for “lost wages,” including “seeking ‘lost wages’ for time frames when he was not working on union activities but at home, downloading, viewing and archiving” inappropriate material.

Bonner will appear in court on Aug. 20

Former Union Leader Misused Funds: Attorney | NBC 7 San Diego

I would say that Obama and his thugs are trying to send the Border Patrol union a message.

Bonner submitted six years' worth of travel expenses to the government at the end of 2009 and filed a grievance when the Border Patrol refused to pay, McCubbin said.

"The agency said this doesn't smell right, and that's when they started their investigation," he said.

Who turns in 6 YEARS worth of travel expenses at one time. Most places require you to turn in your expense report every month or even every week.

Ex-Border Patrol union chief enters plea in fraud case

Written by
Greg Moran
11:42 a.m., Aug. 20, 2012

Also of interest

• INDICTED EX-UNION BOSS DEFIANT
• EX-BORDER PATROL UNION HEAD INDICTED
• Ex-Border Patrol union leader fires back at fraud charges
• Former Border Patrol union head indicted
• Former Border Patrol union head denies fraud

SAN DIEGO — The former leader of the union representing Border Patrol agents pleaded not guilty in federal court in San Diego Monday to charges he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from the national union through bogus reimbursement and pay claims.


T.J. Bonner, the longtime former leader of the national union for Border Patrol agents, arrives at federal court in San Diego for his arraignment on an in indictment accusing him of funneling hundreds of thousands of dollars in union funds for his own use. — Howard Lipin

T.J. Bonner was indicted last week on a dozen charges of wire fraud and conspiracy. At a brief hearing before Magistrate Judge Jan Adler, Bonner's bond was set at $100,000. He also was ordered to surrender his personal firearms, which is a customary condition of bail.

The indictment capped a two-year probe into the 59-year-old Campo resident who headed the National Border Patrol Council for 22 years before leaving in 2011.

By then, Bonner was under investigation for defrauding the union by submitting claims for cars, clothing and other expenses he said he incurred while traveling on union business. He also submitted claims for tens of thousands of dollars in lost pay he said was due him because he was working on union business instead of for the Border Patrol.

Prosecutors said such claims were false. They said instead of traveling on union business, Bonner was on personal business, including visiting a mistress in Chicago. Prosecutors said the lost pay claims were for time Bonner was at home viewing, downloading and archiving pornography.

Bonner has said he is innocent and has come out aggressively refuting the charges. He said he will be exonerated, that all of his payment claims were legitimate, and the indictment is political payback because he was a frequent critic of various border security policies under Democratic and Republican presidential administrations.

Ex-Border Patrol union chief enters plea in fraud case | UTSanDiego.com