Retired Mount Vernon official arrested for allegedly accepting bribes from waste haulers

NEW YORK – Federal authorities Tuesday arrested a former Mount Vernon city man at his Cape Coral, Florida home on charges that he accepted bribes from waste haulers in return for allowing them to overbill Mount Vernon by at least $1.25 million for debris removal.

James Castaldo, 61, worked at the time as a supervisor for the city’s public works department.

Castaldo, who retired in 2005, allegedly accepted bribes from A & D Carting, which had a contract to remove waste from a city storage yard.

Authorities charged that Albert Tranquillo III, who controlled and operated A & D Carting together with a relative, and Michael Pizzolongo, who helped manage the company, defrauded the city by submitting tickets and invoices claiming that far more waste had been carted away from the yard than had actually been removed.

After appearing in federal court in Fort Myers, Florida Tuesday, Castaldo was released on bail.