No tax money at issue in case of Latrobe councilman charged with theft of fire department funds
Jul. 21—Taxpayer money is not at issue in a criminal case against a Latrobe councilman and another man who were arrested by police in connection with thefts from a city fire department, according to Latrobe Mayor Rosie Wolford.
"None of the allegations ... comes from the funds that the city provided to the fire department," she said. "This was not tax dollars. It is the fire department's."
Wolford didn't have any concerns about city accounts after the arrest of Councilman Robert Forish on Tuesday. He serves on the city's public safety and fire committees.
"He is not authorized to sign checks for the city," Wolford said.
Forish, 58, and Fabian Giovannagelo, 65, a former city councilman, were arrested Tuesday afternoon. Westmoreland County detectives filed felony charges of theft and theft by deception and misapplication of entrusted property, a misdemeanor, against them. Police said the pair diverted Goodwill Hose Company No. 1 funds to pay for Giovannagelo's legal representation in a federal lawsuit against the department and city officials.
Giovannagelo and Forish, who was treasurer of the department at the time, co-signed three checks totaling $21,000 for payment of legal fees related to the lawsuit, according to court papers. The checks were signed in the months after Giovannagelo and others were expelled from the department in May 2020, police said.
Attorney Frederick E. Charles of Allentown was given the checks and provided investigators with documentation of the payments, according to court papers. Detectives said there was no vote taken by fire department members to spend the money on legal representation.
Tim Dawson, Giovannagelo's attorney, said his client is falsely accused and the case is based on "internal politics."
"He's looking forward to his day in court," Dawson said.
The suit was filed by Charles in August against the fire company, Chief John Brasile, President Charles McDowell Jr., Wolford and the city. Plaintiffs Christopher Blessing, Fabian Giovannagelo, Nico Giovannagelo, Cody Giovannagelo and Ryan Jones, all of whom were expelled from the department in May, claim their First Amendment rights to criticize Brasile were violated. The case is pending.
Forish is not involved in the civil matter. He previously was on council in 2010 and lost re-election in 2013, months after misdemeanor charges against him were dropped in connection with an incident with a man he believed was dealing drugs. He returned to the board after being elected in 2015 and won another four-year term in 2019, according to election results.
His future on council was unclear. Solicitor John Greiner did not return messages Wednesday. Council members could either not be reached or did not return messages.
Attorney Scott Avolio, who is a solicitor in local municipalities and has no connection to the Latrobe case, said the Pennsylvania constitution allows three methods for removal of an elected official: impeachment, conviction of a crime and by the governor with Senate approval. Avolio spoke generally about the issue.
The conviction of an "infamous crime" makes a person ineligible to serve in an elected capacity. Avolio said that could be a felony charge, forgery, bribery or some other type of crime of dishonesty.
Latrobe's home rule charter states that a council member can be removed from office upon the conviction of a felony charge.
There have been several other instances in Westmoreland County in recent years where municipal elected officials have been in trouble with the law. Some resigned after their arrest and others remained in their post.
Forish and Giovannagelo are free on $25,000 unsecured bond each. Forish could not be reached. Preliminary hearings are set for Aug. 2.
Renatta Signorini is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Renatta at 724-837-5374, rsignorini@triblive.com or via Twitter .
