Former L.A. Union Head Sentenced For $52K Fraud

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The former head of a Los Angeles union is going to federal prison for stealing $52,000 from a voter outreach program.

Alejandro Stephens was sentenced Thursday to four months in prison and another three months under home confinement. The ailing 66-year-old pleaded guilty last year to mail fraud and tax evasion.

Stephens is the former president of Service Employees International Union Local 660, which represents tens of thousands of county workers.

Prosecutors say that in 2004 a non-profit group called the Voter Improvement Project entered into consulting agreements with Stephens, his friends and family and paid them for work that they never performed.

Authorities say the money went to Stephens to fund his 2004 re-election campaign.

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