NEW YORK – Joseph Percoco, the one-time aide to Democratic Governor Cuomo, was sentenced in New York federal court Thursday to six years in prison and three years of post-release supervision.
Percoco was convicted of conspiracy to commit honest services fraud and
solicitation of bribes. He has been linked to the CPV power plant in Wawayanda,
which is gearing up for full operation.
He was charged with soliciting and accepting more than $315,000 in bribes in return for taking official state action to benefit energy company Competitive Power Ventures and Syracuse-based real estate developer COR Development.
Pramilla Malick, founder of the Protect Orange County grassroots group fighting the CPV power plant, was at the sentencing before Judge Valerie Caproni, and said Percoco should have received a harsher sentence.
“I felt that the sentence that she issued was more lenient than it should have been, given the magnitude of his crimes,” Malick said. “Sheldon Silver got 12 years and Joseph Percoco only got six. I felt it should have been greater, especially, when you consider the fact that if this plant is not shut down, we’re sentenced to 40 years of toxic exposure.”
Judge Caproni told the court during sentencing that, “I hope this sentence will be heard in Albany.”
Cuomo’s opponent in the November election, Republican Marcus Molinaro, said Cuomo “was sentenced today – he just doesn’t have to do the time.” Molinaro said while Cuomo “came into office promising reform and ended up turning New York State government into a corrupt, taxpayer-paid enterprise that works only to further his presidential ambitions.”
Assemblyman Karl Brabenec (R, Deerpark) said while Percoco’s sentenced “a victory for proponents of ethics reform in Albany, it’s clear that we still have a long way to go in our efforts to eliminate the corruption we’ve seen under the Cuomo administration.” Brabenec said lawmakers must continue to push initiatives like the Public Officers Accountability Act that would increase transparency in state government.
Malick also believes Percoco took the fall for the governor, who she said had to have known about the criminal activities. And Malick feels that Percoco remains one of the most powerful forces in state politics today.
