Federal agents on Wednesday raided the suburban Detroit-area home of United Auto Workers (UAW) union president Gary Jones amid a corruption investigation into kickbacks and embezzlement by union executives, according to KSL.com.
FBI spokeswoman Mara Schneider confirmed the search but declined further comment. TV stations aired video of agents outside Jones’ home. Agents also searched the Corona, California, home of former UAW President Dennis Williams and the union’s northern Michigan retreat.
Eight people have pleaded guilty in an investigation of union officials and Fiat Chrysler executives enriching themselves with money from a job training center in Detroit. The probe appeared to widen two weeks ago when a former UAW official was charged with accepting kickbacks from union vendors. Mike Grimes was associated with a UAW-General Motors training center. –KSL.com
The UAW responded to the raid in Canton Township, saying in a Wednesday statement “President Jones is determined to uncover and address any and all wrongdoing, wherever it might lead … There was absolutely no need for search warrants to be used by the government today.” – READ MORE