Karam and LaPolla were both charged with fourth-degree grand larceny and public corruption. Karam was also charged with additional counts of fourth-degree grand larceny, public corruption, and third-degree corruption of the government, according to a press release from State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, Oneida County District Attorney Scott McNamara, and New York State Police.
Investigators with three organizations determined Karam allegedly used school money and resources including stamps, envelopes, and other supplies to send election mailers in support of school board candidates that he favored and who determined his contract, salary, and authority.
He is also accused of using school resources to send invitations for a non-school related fundraiser for a purported charity run by LaPolla. Investigators allege that school-district employees stuffed envelopes, paid for by the school, during school hours. The envelopes were then mailed using the district’s stamps. LaPolla was allegedly aware that school resources were being used on his behalf.
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Investigators allege Karam tried to cover up those actions by trying to persuade school-district employees to say the school resources were being used for a valid purpose.
The value of those resources included $9,774 in stamps, $1,015 in supplies, and $3,859 in compensation for hours of work.
“The diversion of funds meant to support the education and well-being of students by high-ranking school officials is an appalling betrayal of the public trust,” DiNapoli said in the release. “Instead of serving the students of the district who they were duty-bound to help, these two defendants allegedly chose to serve themselves.”
Both men were arraigned before Oneida County Court Judge Michael L. Dwyer and are scheduled to appear in court again Dec. 1.
Karam served as UCSD superintendent from 2011 until he was put on leave Oct. 18. He currently remains on leave.
The school district held a special board of education meeting at 4 p.m. on Tuesday Nov. 21, and made a livestream available.
“We continue to cooperate with the ongoing investigations into Mr. Karam and Mr. LaPolla,” Board President Joseph H. Hobika, Jr. said at the meeting. “We, the board of education, want to ensure the Utica community that since Mr. Karam was placed on administrative lave by this board in October of 2022, we’ve taken aggressive and proactive steps to overhaul our administrative operating structure, hire necessary staff, and overall implement guardrails and protective measures to ensure the type of aggressive and illegal misconduct outlined in the indictment doesn’t happen in our district again.”
He went on to say the district hired new counsel, a new public-relations company, and retained a firm to conduct an internal audit and risk assessment.
In September, LaPolla was indicted on six counts of mail fraud for allegedly using tens of thousands of dollars in donations for a scholarship fund he set up to honor his late wife on himself rather than depositing it into the scholarship fund.
LaPolla served as Utica’s mayor from 1984-1995 and as president of the UCSD school board from 2018-2022, following 21 years of service as a board member.
