HART Boss Sees No Reason To Fire Staffer Convicted In Union Vote Rigging
The rail agency’s top executive won’t say who’s advising him to keep Russell Yamanoha at HART after his plea deal.
information specialist Russell Yamanoha earlier this week to a misdemeanor conspiracy charge of helping to rig a union vote in 2015.
The matter was unrelated to rail, but HART already faces its own well-documented issues trying to rebuild public trust, following years of mismanagement and soaring project costs.
Nonetheless, the agency鈥檚 leader said Thursday he saw 鈥渘o compelling reason鈥 to dismiss Yamanoha.
Executive Director Andrew Robbins said HART would wait until Yamanoha鈥檚 sentencing to decide what, if any, action should be taken. That鈥檚 expected to happen in early December.
鈥淎t this point in time, he鈥檚 doing a good job at HART and there鈥檚 no real valid reason for us to change his employment status,鈥 Robbins said.
Yamanoha, a former television sports reporter, joined HART in July 2017, where he serves under the official . Last year he earned a salary of $86,304, according to Civil Beat鈥檚 searchable public employee salary database.
During a press conference outside HART鈥檚 Alii Place headquarters on Thursday, Robbins stressed repeatedly that Yamanoha is not a spokesperson for the rail agency. He described him as 鈥渕ore of a back-office employee.鈥
However, Yamanoha is one of its media contacts. He often joins Robbins and other media staff at press conferences, although he didn’t attend the one held Thursday. He assisted Robbins in February during HART’s media briefings on the agency’s grand jury subpoenas, part of a separate federal criminal investigation.
Robbins was evasive Thursday when pressed for more details on the decision to keep Yamanoha on board.
鈥淭he advice that we鈥檝e been given was that there鈥檚 no compelling reason at this point to change his employment status until we hear what the ruling from the judge will be,鈥 Robbins told reporters.
But Robbins would not say who gave him the advice.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to identify which people,鈥 he said.
Yamanoha鈥檚 election-rigging troubles stem from his time working at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 1260 under its former leader, Brian Ahakuelo. As , Yamanoha has agreed as part of his plea deal to testify against Ahakuelo, who was indicted on 70 counts of embezzlement and wire fraud.
Yamanoha did not respond to a voicemail message left late Thursday.
Robbins said the information specialist’s day-to-day job duties haven鈥檛 changed.
Asked why Yamanoha wasn’t at the press conference Thursday, Robbins paused and then said “there鈥檚 no particular reason.”
“It鈥檚 not needed,” he added.
