A former officer with the D.C. Department of Corrections has admitted to embezzling more than $30,000 — money that was intended to support the interests of the department's labor union. Andra Parker, 65, entered a guilty plea on charges of wire fraud, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office. Parker's past roles included serving as Chairman of the Labor Committee, where he had comprehensive access to the union's funds.
During his time as chairman, which lasted from June 2018 through April 2019, Parker was responsible for carrying out official union-related activities. Instead, he diverted the union's funds for personal leisure, including trips and entertainment for himself and friends. Records show that Parker's misuse of funds included spending over $7,000 on a trip to New York City, where lavish expenditures such as $4,000 on hotel expenses at Times Square and more than $370 on Knicks game tickets were made.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the investigation, conducted by both the FBI's Washington Field Office and the U.S. Department of Labor - Office of Inspector General, unveiled further personal expenditures by Parker. These included over $600 on tickets to the musical "Summer: The Donna Summer Musical" and in excess of $2,000 for attending a Diana Ross concert in North Bethesda, Maryland. Parker's sentencing is set for March 6, 2025, as stated by the Honorable Rudolph Contreras, who presided over the guilty plea.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua Gold and Kondi Kleinman of the Fraud, Public Corruption, and Civil Rights Section are prosecuting the case, with Paralegal Specialist Sonalika Chaturvedi lending assistance.
