Steve Lieberman

slieberm@lohud.com

SPRING VALLEY - The village's chief building inspector and a businessman were arrested Thursday in a corruption investigation that alleges the inspector gave the man false certificates of occupancy for the man's Zeissner Lane home.

That false certificate allowed the businessman to get sizeable tax exemptions and otherwise profit from day-care centers run from the property, prosecutors charge.

Rockland County District Attorney's Office detectives and Spring Valley police arrested the longtime inspector, Walter Booker, as he prepared to drive to work at Village Hall. The homeowner and businessman, Rabbi Jacob Goldman, surrendered to detectives in the afternoon.

The phony paperwork allowed Goldman to get $33,093 in property-tax exemptions in 2012, 2013 and 2014 and operate two day-care centers at 9 Zeissner Lane, according to prosecutors. Goldman also operates a synagogue and school at the house, according to his attorneys, Kenneth Gribetz and Deborah Loewenberg.

The certificates of occupancy designated the single-family ranch-style house as a two-family house, prosecutor Richard Kennison Moran said.

Goldman, who has 12 children, obtained an undisclosed amount of financial support from the state for the two day-care centers there, county officials said.

Mayor Demeza Delhomme tried unsuccessfully to hold a special Board of Trustee meeting Thursday to discuss Booker's arrest. When no one else on the board showed up, he said he would bring the matter up at the next regular board meeting.

Reached separately, Deputy Mayor Emilia White declined immediate comment on the matter, while Trustees Vilair Fonvil, Sherry McGill and Asher Grossman could not be reached for comment.

The board could suspend Booker - who went back to work Thursday after his arraignment - while the criminal charges are pending.

The 10 felony charges against Booker include one count of third-degree grand larceny, three counts each of first-degree falsifying business records four counts of issuing a false certificate, three counts of first-degree offering a false instrument and a misdemeanor official misconduct.

Booker denied the charges after being arraigned by Ramapo Town Justice David Stein and was released without bail pending a court appearance Feb. 4. Moran said the investigation was continuing.

Booker, 54, has worked for the village about 20 years and has been the village's chief building inspector for more than a decade, referred comment to his lawyer, John Sarcone, who also represents the village's police civil service union and other employees.

"Mr Booker has committed no crime," Sarcone said. "Sufficient evidence will be provided with hopes the district attorney will decide to dismiss the charges. If not, they have the burden of proof to prove their charges."

The state day-care money paid to Goldman was distributed through the county's social services department, officials said. The state Office of Children and Family Services approved two day-care centers at what was characterized as a two-family house but never bothered to inspect the property, officials said.

The Rockland County Department of Social Services uncovered the duplicate and contradictory certificates of occupancy and informed the District Attorney's Office, leading to Thursday's arrests, said county spokesman Scott Salatto, who works in County Executive Ed Day's office.

"Despite the excellent work in uncovering the fact that 9 Zeissner Lane is actually a single-family home and not a two-family home, the New York State Office of Children and Family Services continues to license two day-cares at the location, despite having the info uncovered by DSS," Salotto said.

Goldman, 48, allegedly misrepresented how much money he made off day care when filing for the tax exemptions, leading to him being charged with third-degree grand larceny and three counts of offering a false instrument for filing, Moran said.

Stein also released Goldman without bail, pending an appearance on Feb. 18.

His lawyer, Kenneth Gribetz, argued that Goldman received approvals for the day-care facility, a synagogue and three years of tax exemptions, so at worse "this is a zoning violation case."

"I think it's outlandish, this form of prosecution," Gribetz said. "If there are zoning violations it should be treated as such, not as criminal allegations of grand larceny and other felonies."

Delhomme has been critical of the village building department's management, as the state has issued a report critical of the lack of inspections of housing, schools and other buildings. Many buildings haven't been inspected in a decade by the understaffed department.

Delhomme suspended Booker on Dec. 29, 2014, from his $63,000-a-year job for ignoring his order to send checks mailed to the building department to the finance office. The suspension lasted seven months before a court found that the mayor acted improperly.

Delhomme first tried to demote Booker in February 2014, but the Rockland County's personnel commissioner advised against Delhomme's decision, finding his action violated civil service law.

Their feud continues as Booker has asked State Supreme Court Judge Gerald Loehr to hold Delhomme in contempt of a court order that allowed Booker to return to work after an illegal suspension. Delhomme testified that he's cooperating with the court order.

Delhomme also has been accused of ordering a code enforcement officer to issue a permit allow a yeshiva to open before the building had been properly inspected. Delhomme denied charge, saying he just told the inspector to take care of the developer.

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