Nov 14, 2007 2:50 pm US/Eastern
Former Local Lawmaker To Be Charged By AG
HARRISBURG (KDKA) ―
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Frank LaGrotta (File)
KDKA
A former Democratic state legislator has been charged with hiring his sister and niece as legislative aides and paying them thousands of dollars for work they never performed.
This morning, State Attorney General Tom Corbett announced charges against former State Representative Frank LaGrotta of New Castle.
Corbett said LaGrotta broke the state's conflict of interest ethics laws when he hired his sister and niece as ghost employees during his tenure as state representative.
In addition to the charges against LaGrotta, false swearing charges were filed against his sister and his niece.
LaGrotta represented parts of Beaver, Butler and Lawrence counties for 20 years before being defeated in 2006.
Corbett said LaGrotta hired his sister as a consultant right after he lost his primary election and then paid her nearly $2,000 a week for doing nothing.
During the same time, LaGrotta's sister was working full time as an Ellwood City elementary school teacher.
LaGrotta told investigators he hired his sister to archive boxes of legislative documents but the grand jury found that no such boxes ever existed.
LaGrotta was one of the first legislative victims of the pay raise losing his re-election by just 27 votes.
Now he faces more serious legal actions.
LaGrotta and his family members will be formally arraigned in Harrisburg tomorrow.
The indictment comes as the Attorney General is investigating state and legislative leaders for awarding millions of dollars in bonuses to staff people, some of whom were engaged in political work.
Sources say LaGrotta has been cooperating in the investigation.
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