Long investigation into abuse at the regional sewerage authority finally comes to an end, with prison and jail terms on misconduct and theft of service charges.
PATERSON--Two former high-level supervisors at the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission who put agency employees to work as their personal home handymen, while they were supposed to be on the clock, were sentenced to prison Tuesday and permanently banned from public employment.
Another top executive and former commissioner--the agency's one-time ethics officer--was given 90 days in jail in connection with the unauthorized work, and a fourth received probation.
Kevin Keogh, 50, of Roseland, the former superintendent for special services and a former West Orange councilman, was sentenced to five years in state prison. He pleaded guilty in June 2012 to second-degree conspiracy and second-degree official misconduct for using on-duty PVSC employees to do renovations to his home as well as run personal errands.
Keogh, who made $186,000 a year, never paid for the repair work, according to the Attorney General's office.
Paul Bazela, 49, the former mayor of Northvale who worked for the PVSC as foreman of the carpenter's shop, was sentenced to three years in prison. He pleaded guilty in March to third-degree theft by unlawful taking for using his authority to assign on-duty PVSC employees to work at Keogh's home.
Bazela, who made $109,600 a year as a supervisor, was also convicted in March 2014 for having PVSC employees do personal jobs for Anthony Ardis, a former PVSC commissioner who served as its chief ethics officer.
Ardis, 62, of Paterson, was sentenced to 90 days in the county jail and one year of probation. He was convicted at trial on the same charges as Bazela in March 2014, but his conviction was later overturned on appeal. He pleaded guilty in June to conspiracy to commit official misconduct.
Ardis, who served as director of management services and clerk to the PVSC board, was paid $214,000 a year.
The fourth man, Chester Mazza, 75, of Totowa, former assistant superintendent for special services who made $127,000 a year, and also a retired state trooper, was sentenced to one year of probation after pleading guilty in May 2012 to using employees perform work at his home.
Acting Attorney General Christopher Porrino said the men all abused their positions and exploited public workers, vehicles and equipment, at the expense of the taxpayers.
"The sentences imposed today demonstrate our resolve to hold public officials accountable if they abuse their power," he said.
The PVSC, based in Newark, serves more than 1.3 million people, handling the sewage of 48 communities in Essex, Bergen, Passaic and Hudson counties.
The sentences handed down by Superior Court Judge Marilyn Clark in Paterson brought a final end to a case that grew out of a 2011 state investigation, following a series of stories in The Star-Ledger detailing widespread abuse, sweetheart deals and unchecked patronage at the public authority. In the wake of those reports, Gov. Chris Christie later forced six of the PVSC's seven commissioners to step down.
Keogh, Ardis and Mazza were fired from their positions at the PVSC after their arrests in February 2011. Bazela also lost his job in 2011.
Elie Honig, director of the the Division of Criminal Justice, said the four betrayed the public trust by using public employees and resources for personal gain.
Top: Kevin Keogh (l.),Paul Bazela; Bottom: Anthony Ardis (l), Chester Mazza. (NJ Attorney General's office photos)Keogh admitted he had employees install kitchen cabinet doors at his home, which had been fabricated in a PVSC woodshop. Keogh also had mechanics from the PVSC's vehicle maintenance department remove an old pool pump motor from his swimming pool, and install a new one in its place.
Keogh also admitted using PVSC employees to run errands for him on agency time, including putting up Christmas decorations at his home, and picking up landscaping items from the Home Depot and Lowe's, such as plants, fertilizer, decorative stone and pool supplies.
Bazela admitted in connection with his plea that he ordered carpenters and other skilled employees perform work at Keogh's home. At trial, he was also convicted of using his authority to have on-duty PVSC employees perform personal work on behalf of Ardis.
Ardis had been convicted with Bazela as well, but his conviction was overturned on appeal. He later admitted conspiring with Bazela to have carpenters and other workers go to the homes of his mother and girlfriend to do repairs and improvements while on-duty for the PVSC, including tearing down drywall, installing a microwave over, and installing air conditioning units.
Ted Sherman may be reached at tsherman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TedShermanSL. Facebook: @TedSherman.reporter. Find NJ.com on Facebook.