Former Philadelphia union president sentenced to 4 years in prison for embezzlement

READING, Pa. — The former president of a Philadelphia union has been sentenced to four years in prison for his role in what federal prosecutors said was the embezzlement of more than $600,000 in union funds.

Brian Burrows, 64, of Mount Laurel, N.J., a former president of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98, was also ordered Wednesday in federal court in Reading to forfeit nearly $136,000 and pay restitution to be determined later.

Burrows and John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty, the union's longtime business manager, were convicted in December of conspiracy, embezzlement and other charges. Prosecutors said they used the money for expenses such as home renovations, concerts, groceries and even a cookie tray for a relative's baby baptism.

Dougherty is scheduled to be sentenced July 11.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Burrows addressed the court for 45 minutes, presenting himself as a loyal manager of union funds who delivered thousands of dollars in pension benefits, health care and profit-sharing checks to the limb pockets.

“This is not a coincidence,” Burrows said repeatedly, adding that his day job “was not to see what was on John Dougherty's expense reports.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Bea Witzleben noted that she had not heard an apology and said Burrows appeared to be saying that if he was saving union electricians money here and there, “it was OK to steal from them.”

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl criticized Burrows not only for a “gross abuse” of union members’ trust, but also for his failure to stop the wrongdoing of others, saying he had “clearly ignored warning signs from auditors and other union officials.”

Dougherty, 63, was previously convicted of corruption for keeping a city council member on the union payroll to help control construction work. Former council member Bobby Henon is serving a 3 1/2 year prison sentence.