Late last week, I told you that I high-ranking Bethlehem City official had been fired and was under criminal investigation for possible theft from city coffers. I declined to name the person. On Tuesday, after both WFMZ-TV69 and The Morning Call also reported on this matter and identified the person as Budget Director Mark Sivak, I described the fraudulent scheme under investigation. Today, District Attorney Terry Houck announced that Sivak has been charged with Theft by Unlawful Taking, Receiving Stolen Property, Dealing in Proceeds of Unlawful Activities and Criminal Use of a Communications Facility.
These are all felony charges.
In a statement, DA Terry Houck indicates that City Controller George Yasso first identified unusual activity in Bethlehem's Paypal account in mid-January. He noticed that withdrawals from the City's Paypal were going into Sivak's personal account.
The matter was referred to Bethlehem police for investigation, and Sivak admitted to them on April 28 that he was moving money from the City's account to his own. He explained that he sells electronic equipment through a third-party reseller and was having this middleman send payments for sales to tyhe City's account instead of his own so he could evade sales tax.
Police investigated Sivak's email exchanges and noticed contacts with the reseller as far back as May 2021. At that time, Sivak was selling three new Verizon iPhone 11s for $1,638.
Subsequent investigation revealed that, between November 2019 and January 2022, Sivak sold 31 city cellphones for $12,630. In some cases, he ordered upgrades for city employees, but never provided them with the cellphones. In addition, he used the city's Paypal account to order carious electronic devices for himself, including headsets, soundbar and subwoofer. These items are valued at about $2,500.
The charges were filed with Magisterial District Judge Roy Manwaring. He set bail at $25,000, unsecured. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 22 at 9 am. Sivak is represented by prominent criminal defense lawyer James Burke.
Below is a copy of the criminal complaint, which includes the affidavit of probable cause.
Mark Sivak Complaint by BernieOHare on Scribd
Typical government in the U.S.--it happens on all levels many times and that is not talking about the ones that get away This country is in big trouble.
ReplyDeleteHope Whitehall takes a cue from Bethlehem we the people have been cheated by the tax office and nothing has been done.
ReplyDeleteGlad he was nabbed. But every part of this story and ones like it are really depressing. This is why I like dogs and cats better than most humans.
ReplyDeleteHow about frogs and turtles?
DeleteSo much turmoil in the Christmas City over the last few years. Why are we so surprised? Mr Donchez just sat back and collected paychecks. For an administrator to actually allow his wife to take a superintendent position is more than brazen. Where does the accountability lye? Maybe this will lead to more stories of corruption.
ReplyDeleteThere is zero accountability in the City. Employees who steal time because they hang out all day and don’t actually do any work or coming to work late and leaving early on a regular basis describes a MAJORITY of city workers. There are a few who have earned their positions and pay, but very few. There are definitely favorites who get away with more than others. And for the Controller to take credit for catching this… I call BS. Coincidentally, the city was undergoing their annual audit at the time. Noticed suspicious activity in January but didn’t report to police until April??? C’mon! The controllers office is just as useless as everyone else in the City! Plus, it’s been going on for YEARS… How does a COMPETENT controllers office NOT catch this for almost THREE years??
DeleteThis guy is a dope
ReplyDelete"Typical government in the U.S.--it happens on all levels many times"
ReplyDeleteI note you fail to cite any data to back up your claim. Theft does occur, both in and out of government. The problem is not government. The problem is human beings sometimes make poor choices.
"Why are we so surprised? Mr Donchez just sat back and collected paychecks. For an administrator to actually allow his wife to take a superintendent position is more than brazen."
ReplyDeleteI certainly do not fault Bob Donchez or the current Mayor, Willie. Mark had gained the trust of everyone over years of hard work. I have indicated myself that I considered Mark one of Bethlehem's top employees. There might be some failures on the part of Sivak's immediate supervisor, Eric Evans. But the simple reality is that we all make mistakes in judgment. For most of us, they are minor. For others, and I include myself in this category, they can be serious lapses. In my case, it was alcohol. I am guessing, and this is strictly speculation, that Mark was undergoing some sort of midlife crisis. That's no excuse, but might explain it. Also, I know for a fact that he was under a lot of stress.
As a matter of financial control, I think the City should consider requiring two people to sign off on purchases or expenditures. I also believe Paypal should be dropped. It is too easy to mask this kind of embezzlement.
I can understand someone being under stress and making incorrect decisions. To go and buy personal items such as speakers and headsets just seems blatanly arrogant.
DeleteYou former crooks always makes excuses and blames it on lapses no wonder you defend government and the political class that has made this country so great.
ReplyDeleteHow foolish to take that chance for a relatively small amount of money.
ReplyDeleteThrew it away for 14 thousand. Fascinating.
ReplyDeleteOnce again you were on top of a new sad scandal.
ReplyDeleteNo way should any single person be allowed to sign-off on payments or sales.
ReplyDelete"As a matter of financial control, I think the City should consider requiring two people to sign off on purchases or expenditures. I also believe Paypal should be dropped. It is too easy to mask this kind of embezzlement."
After reading the criminal complaint, two things stand out. 1. Sivak would have gotten away with this if he had not been so greedy to try to avoid getting a 1099 from paypal. 2. The Controller only got wind of this due to Sivak's own mistakes---some internal controls were clearly missing since 2019. Rumor has it the controller only got wind of it after one of the health department people with PayPal access alerted his office after Sivak told her he mistakenly transferred the money from Paypal to his personal account, and then put it back.
ReplyDeleteWrong
DeleteCorrect. Controller couldn’t have caught anything in January as the PayPal discrepancy didn’t happen until February. Seems like the controller caught the mistake. The police ended up finding the actual crime.
DeleteSo sad when these guys with some seniority, community presence, and a good executive salary decide to just bend the rules for what seems like a minimal amount of money. Why risk so much for so little? Such sad self-sabotoge.
ReplyDelete"e city was undergoing their annual audit at the time. Noticed suspicious activity in January but didn’t report to police until April??? C’mon! The controllers office is just as useless as everyone else in the City! Plus, it’s been going on for YEARS… How does a COMPETENT controllers office NOT catch this for almost THREE years??"
ReplyDeleteYou flunk reading comprehension. You must have been hanging out and goofing off instead of learning how to read, like the city workers you blast. My story does NOT state that the Controller discovered potential fraud in January, but waited until April to contact police. It states that April is when Sivak was interviewed by police. You twisted my narrative to fit your own misguided agenda.
This criminal conduct went on for a little over two years, not three, before it was caught by the Controller. Given the numerous creative ways in which people can steal, I do credit him for catching it long before thousands turned into millions.
I do agree with another reader, not you, suggesting better internal controls are needed. That observation should have been made by the city's external auditor, not the controller.
"You former crooks always makes excuses and blames it on lapses no wonder you defend government and the political class that has made this country so great."
ReplyDeleteI am in no way excusing criminal behavior. I actually exposed it before anyone else. I have tried to explain why I think an exemplary employee went off the rails.
In most cases you eviscerate public officials for the slightest things. However, when you like someone, you are quick to make excuses for them.
ReplyDeleteThe Sivak story has many missing pieces. Not missing by you , Bernie, missing by the City of Bethlehem's actions. Sivak was the Finance Director for the City, the highest paid non- political fiscal officer. The discovery of his wrong doing was made by the Controllers office in January. An investigation took several months to uncover relatively "low hanging fruit " theft involving PayPal and and the sale of electronics ( cell phones, primarily) to the tune of 12,000 plus dollars. Sivak had access to all city accounts and fiscal transactions. He reported to the the Business Administrator ( a political appointee with no previous fiscal management experience, who has questionable ethical issues involving the hiring of his wife). The Business Administrator reports to a new mayor who has no management experience nor fiscal management experience. Suspicion focuses on Sivak who remains employed during the "investigative period". The Controller ( an elected official) conducts the investigation without outside neutral help and the City Police Department ( which I hold in high regard) is asked to investigate a "white collar" crime ( a skill set not normally performed). Publicaly everyone is patting themselves on their backs stating " we caught the misdeeds and wrongdoer". Did they ? Or is there more wrongdoing and possible theft ? There are many ways you can resolve corruption in municipal government . Let me outline one that is normally used by other local governments that have had similar problems involving theft. You need to keep in mind that " caught wrongdoers" will always "cop" to a lesser crime. That is called self preservation. Sometimes , those who supervise them are complicit and welcome their silence. Sivak's misdeeds ( at least for this alleged theft) occurred during a multi- year period ( under The Business Administrators supervision ). How did his misdeeds go unnoticed ? Sivak had a dual role, he was also Budget Director. He was constructing city budgets while purportingly stealing at the same time. He was signing off on expenditure of city, state, and federal revenue sources. Did he "tamper " with other funding that exposed the city to "unallowable" costs ? Was he "directed" to do so. Is there documentation to his actions during and before this alleged crime took place. Here in this democracy called the United States we have different branches of government that are supposed to function as "checks and balances". The Bethlehem City Council needs to be seen by the public as "involved and accountable" . They can do this by demanding a Forensic Audit be performed by a forensic auditor whose selection they oversee. No cover-ups, no one forgiven for lack of oversight ...... An honest accounting of the city's financing and a renewal of that concept called Public Trust. Transparency and public release of findings would be a welcomed outcome for a City that has too often operated in the Shadows.
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