Labor Union Officers Charged With Embezzlement, Theft Of Union Funds

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – The financial secretary of a Minnesota labor union has been charged with embezzlement and theft of labor union assets, U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger announced Friday.

Scot McNamara, 56, is a member of the International Association of Heat ad Frost Insulators and Allied Workers, Local 34, a union representing 458 Minnesota members. McNamara served as the financial secretary of the union from December 2007 until December 2012, when he failed in his bid for re-election.

According to the indictment, McNamara used reward points earned on a Visa rewards credit card he had for use on behalf of the union for personal items, including $1,900 in gas cards. He also used the card to pay personal expenses, including more than $2,800 in plane tickets for a family vacation to the Grand Cayman Islands.

The indictment and documents filed in court show that in 2011, McNamara attended a training for his union role in 2011. Local 34 paid $3,054.84 for McNamara's attendant at the training, but he requested and received $3,087.84 in reimbursement. Nearly all the expenses he claimed had already been paid by the union, the attorney's office said. Instead of turning over the reimbursement funds, McNamara used the money for personal expenses, including the previously mentioned family vacation.

Keith Christopherson, 53, has also been charged with embezzlement and theft of labor union assets, the attorney's office said.