The former president of the New York Police Department sergeants’ union pleaded guilty to participating in a scheme to defraud the association of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Edward Mullins, 61, the former president of the Sergeants Benevolent Association, recently pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, according to a Jan. 19 news release. Mullins allegedly participated in a criminal scheme to submit false expense reports to defraud the SBA of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
"Edward Mullins promised to look out for the thousands of hard-working NYPD sergeants who are members of the SBA. Instead, as admitted today in federal court, he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from them to fund his lavish lifestyle," U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in the release. "Thanks to the hard work of the FBI, Mullins’s betrayal has been exposed, and he now faces jail time and significant financial penalties."
Mullins was the president of the SBA from 2002 until October 2021, the release reported. Beginning in 2017, Mullins allegedly began using his personal credit cards to purchase expensive meals and luxury personal items and later submitted false and inflated expense reports claiming the charges as SBA expenses.
Mullins allegedly filed hundreds of fraudulent expense reports and defrauded at least $600,000 from the SBA, according to the release.
Mullins faces up to 20 years imprisonment for his actions, the release reported. As part of his plea agreement, he has agreed to forfeit $600,000 in restitution to the SBA. Mullins is scheduled to be sentenced May 25 by U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl.
