The Los Angeles Fire Department union president and two other top officers were suspended from the post Monday after an investigation by the union’s parent organization found $800,000 in credit card purchases that were not properly considered.
International assn. A firefighter fighter jet that oversaw the other two through diverse financial injustice that has halted the city of Los Angeles and other local firefighters unions across the country and other local firefighters unions, according to a letter to IAFF President Edward Kelly Member.
The IAFF has appointed parents to take over the union to restore responsible financial management and ensure the performance of UFLAC’s legitimate objectives.
“UFLAC leadership abandoned the trustee’s responsibility and placed local 112 on the villains. Financial misconduct by UFLAC leadership has done serious harm to membership,” Kelly added.
The dramatic move comes after the widespread audit of UFLAC’s finances revealed various types of financial fraud.
The audit found that Escobar began trading 1,957 UFLAC credit cards from July 2018 to November 2024, totaling $311,497.58. Over 70% of these transactions ($230,466) do not have support documents.
“The auditors were unable to confirm the purpose of these transactions,” Kelly wrote in the letter. He added that the additional 157 transactions (equivalent to $35,397) are only partially supported by the required documentation.
“This means there is no way to determine whether the dues are $265,862.34, the dues spent by President Escobar without a document,” the letter states.
Escobar did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The audit found that the other two (former secretary Adam Walker and former treasurer Domingo Albalan Jr.) came together to have more than $530,000 in credit card transactions that have no receipts or are only partially documented. Walker did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Albalan declined to comment.
Vice Presidents Truong Ho and Doug Coates were also suspended and accused of violating the fiduciary’s obligations to “fail to implement UFLAC policies.” Neither responded to requests for comment immediately.
“Protecting membership fees that members contribute to local unions is one of the best priorities for all local union officers,” Kelly writes. “In fact, local union officers are legally liable, known as fiduciary duty, and this knows exactly how your membership fees are spent to ensure that fees are tracked with your best interests.”
The investigation began last October when the union’s new treasurer, Jason Powell, raised concerns with the IAFF about inappropriate recordkeeping and use of union funds.
The Times first reported the audit from December 2022 to January 2024, along with the suspension of Walker, who was accused of improperly depositing more than $75,000 in funds from the union’s charity for injured firefighters in a personal account.
Walker previously told The Times that the allegations were wrong. He said the account he drew was not for the charity UFLAC Fire Foundation, but was set up for two golf tournaments to raise money for former firefighters with disabilities. All deposits were refunds for the tournament’s legitimate out-of-pocket costs, Walker said.
However, an IAFF investigation found that shortly after moving large amounts of money from a charity account to a personal account, Walker paid for his mortgage and RV loan payments and made cash ATM withdrawals at the casino.
The announcement comes soon after a Times investigation that found that Escobar and other top union officers have been padding their pay with overtime for many years, while also collecting five- to six-figure union scholarships.
Escobar made roughly $540,000 in 2022. This is a recent year where both his city and union income records are available. He more than doubled his base salary of $184,034 in overtime payments that year, earning more than $424,500 in total from the city in salary and benefits, pay data shows.
He has raised an additional $115,962 scholarship from the union, according to his latest federal tax return. He reported working 48 hours a week in roles related to Union, but the record provided by the city that year earned an average of 30 hours of overtime per week.
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