A Newark city council member pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiring with an associate to shake down companies seeking development and construction projects in the city, the U.S. attorney’s office said.
Joseph McCallum Jr. admitted participating in a scheme between 2017 and 2020 that included a $16,000 bribe from a contracting company and a $25,000 bribe and kickback from a developer’s company. He pleaded guilty to one count of honest services wire fraud and one count of filing a fraudulent tax return.
The 66-year-old McCallum is an Air Force veteran and Newark native who has worked as a substance abuse counselor for the Veterans Administration and was elected to the Newark council in 2014, according to his biography on the council website.
McCallum has continued to serve on the council since he was charged in Oct. 2020, and his picture remained on the council's website Tuesday. It wasn't immediately clear when he would resign or who would assume his seat. A message was left with Mayor Ras Baraka's office.
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At the time McCallum was charged, consultant Malik Frederick, named by the U.S. attorney's office as a co-conspirator, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and filing a false tax return.
According to prosecutors, Frederick took money from the companies in exchange for providing access to McCallum, who used his position on the council and as a member of the Newark Community Economic Development Corporation, later renamed Invest Newark, to help their efforts.
The maximum prison sentence for honest services fraud is 20 years; the maximum sentence for tax return fraud is three years. McCallum is scheduled to be sentenced on July 21.
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“Mr. McCallum has been a tremendous asset and advocate for the citizens of the city of Newark and his hard work in support of the city he loves will never be taken away,” Raymond Hamlin, an attorney representing McCallum, said in an email. “He has taken responsibility for his actions and looks forward to an opportunity in the future to continue supporting this great city and the citizens who call this their home.”
