Conahan,Ciavarella and the Drug Dealer

Lets take a trip way back to 1990 and Judge Michael Conahans first brush with Political and criminal corruption.

Conahan was described by the federal prosecutor in the Ronald Belletiere Drug trafficking trial in 1991 as an “unindicted co-conspirator.”

Justice is the case of Conahan has been a long time coming!



91 Case looms large casting shadows...

Former Hazleton resident Ronald Belletiere was at the center of a trial 18 years ago.

By Jerry Lynott jlynott@timesleader.com
Business Writer

SCRANTON – When his name came up in a federal trial 18 years ago during his tenure as a district justice in Hazleton, Michael Conahan distanced himself as far as he possibly could from an admitted drug trafficker.

Last week, Conahan, a retired Luzerne County judge, appeared in court and pleaded guilty to unrelated charges before the same judge who heard the accusations in 1991.

Senior U.S. Judge Edwin Kosik accepted Conahan’s plea and that of his fellow county jurist Mark Ciavarella to tax evasion and participating in a scheme to defraud the public of their honest services by accepting $2.6 million in kickbacks involving two juvenile detention centers.

The two disgraced judges will appear before Kosik at a later date for sentencing.

Though nearly two decades separate the cases, common connections of people, place and profession link the figures in this ongoing and growing investigation of corruption in Luzerne County Court.

Among them are:

Ronald Belletiere – a former Hazleton resident and convicted drug dealer who served nearly four years in prison.

A witness at Belletiere’s trial before Judge Kosik in 1991 said Conahan advised the witness his brother’s name was being mentioned by law enforcement at Hazleton City Hall regarding drug activity. The witness, Neal DeAngelo of Hazleton, said Belletiere later called him “at the direction of Mike Conahan … to see if we can do some business.”

Belletiere also was listed as a permanent guest on the list of people who visited the Jupiter, Fla. condominium managed by Conahan’s wife,Barbara.

In 2004, Belletiere opened a used car dealership in Florida with the judge’s wife.

Judge Mark Ciavarella – (left front in photo) defendant in the current case before Judge Kosik. Ciavarella’s wife Cindy is listed as a partner with Barbara Conahan in the Pinnacle Group of Jupiter, LLC which owns a condominium at the Jupiter Yacht Club. The condominium has been for sale since July 2008. They purchased the condo in 2004 for $785,000. The asking price is $995,000.

Judge Michael Conahan – (top right in photo) defendant in the case before Judge Kosik.

Conahan was described by the federal prosecutor in the Belletiere trial as an “unindicted co-conspirator.”

The prosecutor, Malachy Mannion, now a U.S, Magistrate Judge in Wilkes-Barre, summed up the testimony of witness Neal DeAngelo for Judge Kosik during a sidebar conversation not made available to the jury.

Mannion said, “… they were looking for a drug source and Conahan began giving him information that his brother (Paul DeAngelo) was in trouble with the law enforcement authorities and said … ‘I’ll get you somebody from Florida.’ And Ronnie Belletiere called and they met as a result of Conahan’s involvement …”

Conahan denounced the testimony as bogus and said the statements tying him to the Empire drug ring were made by “common criminals trying to help themselves at my expense.”

In the latest charges, federal authorities said Conahan and Ciavarella laundered some of the money they received in the kickback scheme as expenses for the Jupiter, Fla. condo where not only Belletiere stayed, but also attorney Robert Powell, another permanent guest. Powell docked his $1.5 million yacht, the “Reel Justice” in the marina outside the condo. Powell, identified as “Participant 1” by federal authorities, has been implicated in the kickback scheme involving the PA Child Care LLC juvenile detention center he co-owned, but has not been charged.

Neal DeAngelo – witness at Belletiere’s trial and co-founder with his brother Paul of DBI Services, 100 North Conahan Drive, Hazleton.

DeAngelo testified he flew back from Miami in 1987 carrying in his luggage cocaine he bought in Miami. His brother Paul and Neil Forte accompanied him on the trip. Neal DeAngelo was not charged. Forte pleaded guilty in 1989 to operating a criminal enterprise and tax evasion and received a 10-year prison sentence.

Paul DeAngelo - co-founder of DBI Services with his brother Neal.

Paul DeAngelo was sentenced by Judge Kosik to 18 months in prison for his guilty plea to aiding with the distribution of a kilogram of cocaine in 1987. The prosecution sought a departure downward from the mandatory minimum of five years in prison for DeAngelo’s cooperation. He wore a wire in an effort to obtain statements from a “public official” in Hazleton. He and Belletiere also met with the state Judicial Conduct Board to provide information about the “public official” whom prosecutors have never publicly identified.

Senior U.S. Judge Edwin Kosik – will sentence judges Ciavarella and Conahan for their roles in an ongoing public corruption probe in Luzerne County.

Kosik presided over the Belletiere trial in 1991 in which Conahan’s name came up. The federal judge also sentenced Paul DeAngelo for his role in the Empire drug ring.

Attorney Robert Powell – references in criminal complaint against judges Ciavarella and Conahan point to the attorney as “Participant 1” in the kickback scheme.

However, attorneys for Powell portray him as a victim of the demands for payment by the judges.

Powell had been co-owner of the juvenile detention facilities operated by PA Child Care LLC. But his connections to the judges run deeper. He visited the condo managed by the judges’ wives in Florida and docked his boat in the marina there as well.

He also had a hand in W-Cat Inc., the company behind the development of The Sanctuary townhouse project in Wright Township. He later transferred his interest to his law partner and Luzerne County Prothonotary Jill Moran. The judges and their wives guaranteed $4.5 million in financing for the development, but First National Community Bank of Dunmore obtained a judgment against them on Wednesday for W-Cat’s default on the loans.

Conahan had been a director at the bank along with Louis A. DeNaples. But DeNaples, owner of the Mount Airy Casino Resort in the Poconos, stepped down as a bank chairman after a grand jury indicted him on charges he allegedly lied to state gambling officials about his ties to organized crime members. Conahan resigned as director after federal authorities announced charges against him last month.

Attorney Richard Sprague – counsel for attorney Robert Powell and Louis A. DeNaples.

Sprague, of Philadelphia, said Powell “made a mistake in giving in to the judges’ demands and for not immediately reporting them to authorities.” Powell eventually did notify authorities and cooperated with them to provide “integral” assistance to the prosecution of the judges, Sprague said.

In addition to representing DeNaples in his pending perjury case, Sprague defended The Times Leader in 1991 on charges it published contents of an illegally tape recorded telephone conversation. The charges were later dismissed.

A few years earlier, Sprague was co-counsel in the team that represented former Luzerne County Judge Arthur Dalessandro. Midway through his 1989 trial, Dalessandro pleaded guilty to attempted tax evasion and was later sentenced to one year in federal prison.

More recently, in December, Sprague sat on the Court of Judicial Discipline that heard testimony in the misconduct complaint filed against Luzerne County Judge Ann Lokuta and ordered her removed from the bench.

Lokuta was in the courtroom Thursday when Ciavarella and Conahan entered their guilty pleas. Ciavarella embraced her at the end of the proceeding.