NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – A New Jersey business owner admitted on Wednesday to bribing a former city official in exchange for that official’s assistance in acquiring and redeveloping Newark-owned properties, prosecutors announced.
Irwin Sablosky, 64, pleaded guilty to two counts of an indictment charging him with honest services fraud and bribery.
According to court documents, Sablosky admitted to bribing Carmelo Garcia, a former Newark deputy mayor and director of the Newark Department of Economic and Housing Development (DEHD), in exchange for Garcia's influence to help Sablosky acquire various Newark-owned properties for redevelopment. Garcia also served as the executive vice president and chief real estate officer of the Newark Community Economic Development Corporation (NCEDC) during this time.
From 2017 to April 2019, Sablosky, Frank Valvano Jr., and others gave money and gifts to Garcia while he was a high-ranking Newark official, and before that, an executive at the NCEDC, according to prosecutors. In return, Garcia used his influence to help them with real estate development projects in Newark, prosecutors said.
This included securing preliminary designation letters and redevelopment agreements that allowed them to purchase Newark-owned properties. Along with cash, Sablosky and Valvano also gave Garcia expensive jewelry, including watches and chains, from their pawnbroker and jewelry business.
Phone records and text messages obtained by detectives showed communication between Garcia, Valvano, Sablosky, and others throughout this period of time. In one instance, in June 2018, Sablosky and Valvano, through an intermediary, supplied Garcia, then the city’s acting deputy mayor and director of the city’s DEHD, $25,000 in cash as part of the stream of bribes provided to Garcia.
Sablosky originally was charged by indictment in 2021 with Valvano, 56, and Garcia, 59.
“He corrupted the public official’s independent judgment and violated the public trust for his own financial gain.” U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. “Our office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to make sure that the people of New Jersey are protected from public officials whose greed overrides their sworn duty to serve the people and from the individuals who bribe those officials.”