The investigation of former SEIU local presidents Tyrone Freeman and Rickman Jackson, suspected of embezzlement, fraud, and intimidation, got a little more serious yesterday, when union spokeswoman Michelle Ringuette reported that the union had been notified of a US Labor Department investigation. The inquiry is being conducted by two Labor Department organizations ? the Office of Labor-Management Standards and the Inspector General?s Office. The Labor Department has not officially confirmed the start of an investigation, but has indicated that they ?take very seriously any allegations of intimation, violence or retaliation? [It] is unacceptable and is prohibited by law.?
See "Labor Department reportedly joins investigation of SEIU payments", Paul Pringle, Los Angeles Times, August 27, 2008