BY STEVE WARMBIR
FEDERAL COURTS REPORTER
November 10, 2000
The former president and
business manager of a local union based in Chicago Heights was charged with
racketeering and fraud Thursday for allegedly stealing more than $470,000 in
union money and covering it up.
Frank B. Zeuberis, 54, of
St. John, Ind., led Local 5 of the Laborers International Union of North
America from 1994 to 1998, when he is accused of committing the crimes,
authorities said.
At the time, the union
represented about 800 members, mainly construction workers.
Zeuberis allegedly gave
himself and two other union employees, including his wife, unauthorized bonuses
and increases in pay and vacation time.
The deeds were uncovered
as part of a national reform effort begun by the union in 1995 to shed itself
from organized crime influence, as part of a deal made with the U.S. Justice
Department.