Former Transit Official Admits Agreeing to Accept $8,000 Bribe

A former New Jersey Transit (NJ Transit) official admitted she agreed to accept an $8,000 bribe and power-washing services in connection with a snow removal contract, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Donna Schiereck, 56, of Jackson, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William H. Walls in Newark federal court to an information charging her with one count of agreeing to accept a bribe.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

From September 2012 to December 2012, Schiereck was a supervisor at NJ Transit. Schiereck agreed to accept $8,000 in exchange for her assistance with maintaining snow removal work for a Lakewood, New Jersey company. She also sought and received free power washing services from the company in return for her official assistance.

The bribery count to which Schiereck pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for September 9, 2014.