DETROIT (WWJ) -- A Detroit man who pleaded guilty to his role in a bribery scandal surrounding the city's federal demolition program has been sentenced to one year in federal prison.
Aradondo Haskins, 48, was sentenced Monday for taking more than $26,000 in bribes while he was employed at Adamo Group and with the city of Detroit. Haskins was a field operations manager for the City of Detroit Building Authority, overseeing the demolition program in Detroit.
The Blight Elimination Program was created by the U.S. Treasury Department to help rid the city of dangerous blight, mainly in vacant homes. The program is paid for through the Hardest Hit Fund, a housing support program intended to protect home values, preserve home ownership, and promote economic growth, according to a press release.
Haskins was employed as an "estimator" for Adamo, which is a private, for-profit group that provides demolition services nationwide, from 2013-2015. With Adamo, Haskins was tasked with assembling bid packages in response to requests for proposals from the city of Detroit. Adamo responded to the proposals by submitting bids to the city in hopes of being the lowest bidder.
Officials say while assembling the bid packages, Haskins would contact various subcontractors about carrying out the work and on several occasions, he accepted money from an unnamed contractor -- identified in court documents as "Contractor A" -- for disclosing confidential information about the Contractor A's competitors that allowed Contractor A to submit a lower bid in able to ensure securing the contract.
Authorities said Haskins accepted about $14,000 while working for Adamo and approximately $11,500 while working for the city.
Federal Judge Victoria Roberts sentenced Haskins to a year in prison, though prosecutors were seeking 24-30 months in prison. His sentencing comes after 62-year-old Anthony DaGuanno was ordered to serve a year in prison. Considering DaGuanno admitted to taking more than $370,000 in bribes, Haskins' attorney, David Burgess, was disappointed his client got the same sentence.
"The other defendant in the case had gotten a lot more (money) over a longer period of time and we were hoping because my client's involvement was less, and the amount was less, we were hoping for less time," Burgess told WWJ's Vickie Thomas. "We are disappointed with the sentence. He was hoping to be able to stay with his family and continue to support his kids. He's been trying really hard."
Prior to Monday's sentencing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Resnick Cohen told the court that Haskins corrupted Detroit's federal demolition program by taking the bribes and said his actions eroded public trust, now leading to questions about Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan's push for a new $250 million demolition bond.
Last week Duggan asked the Detroit City Council to approve the $250 million bond issue, which he claims will not cost city residents any additional tax money, to get on the March 10 ballot in order to wipe out all blight in the city by mid-2025. The proposal comes as the city is close to running out of money from the Hardest Hit Fund. which totaled more than $260 million.
