Sanitation probe nabs developer

Monday, November 23, 2009
By CHARLES HACK
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

A prominent Bayonne developer, Vincent Alessi, 42, has been indicted for allegedly bribing a New York City Department of Sanitation official to get contracts for his concrete company, according to court papers.

Alessi, who lives in Bayonne, was one of 22 people arrested last week in a sweep stemming from two separate investigations into mob-controlled loansharking, gambling and bribery, officials said.

Alessi, president of Duramix Concrete Corp. in Bayonne, was indicted by a grand jury in New York for alleged conspiracy and bribery.

The investigation was led by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's Organized Crime Task Force and the New York City Police Department.

New York City Department of Sanitation Deputy Chief Frederick Grimaldi, 44, of Marlboro, New Jersey and his alleged "Gambino-soldier" father-in-law Michael Murdocco, 64, of Staten Island, were charged with rigging bids to steer contracts to Duramix.

In exchange for kickbacks from Alessi, Grimaldi and Murdocco allegedly received a "portion of the price of the goods" that were provided to the Department of Sanitation, the indictment said.

"It's inexcusable that a high-ranking sanitation official would sabotage the city bidding process for his own gain and that of favored vendor, as charged in this indictment," City of New York Department of Investigation Commissioner Rose Gill Hearn said.

Alessi is an owner of the 20-acre South Cove Commons mall off Route 440 and LeFante Way, which opened in 2001, and the 51-unit Peninsula Court on 25th Street, between Broadway and Avenue C, which opened in 2003.