Frank Gigliotti

A close ally of former Pittsburgh Mayor Richard Caliguiri, Gigliotti was the Special Assistant to Director of the Pittsburgh Department of Public Works during the 1980s and served as a board member of the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority, also known as Alcosan.[4] He was a Democratic chairman of Pittsburgh's 19th Ward.[4] He was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1988. Gigliotti was known as a popular and friendly politician who had the "gift of gab."[4] During his tenure, Gigliotti was known as the House Democratic Caucus' "point man" for the proposed expansion of riverboat gambling.[5]

Over a period of 3 years in the late 1990s, Gigliotti extorted thousands of dollars from government contractors, who had hoped to gain contracts from Alcosan, where Gigliotti sat on the board.[6] In 1998 and 1999, he took $17,100 in bribes in exchange for his influence over the awarding of a sludge recycling contract.[6] Gigliotti then demanded 10 percent of the profits and then $2,000 a month from the contract.[6] He also extorted plane fare and tickets to Disney World from an Alcosan engineering firm. In 1999, he tried to sell confidential Alcosan bid information to several competing firms.[6] One of those firms included governmental informant Ernest Smalis, who recorded Gigliotti say, "[Expletive] the people."[6]

In April 2000, he pleaded guilty to federal extortion, mail fraud, and tax evasion charges and was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison by United States federal judge Gustave Diamond, who said that "Gigliotti treated his political power and influence as a commodity to be sold for personal profit, which he did without restraint or regret."[6] Following the sentencing, the prosecuting Assistant U.S. Attorney told Gigliotti, "Frank, from everything I've been told, you're a loving father and grandfather. I hope your family carries you through this."[7]

It was later discovered by The Morning Call that his political committee "Friends of Frank Gigliotti" had paid $3,000 to the Manifesto & Donahoe law firm in contravention of Pennsylvania's campaign finance laws, which states that such funds must be used "for the purposes of influencing the outcome of an election."[8] The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette noted that just prior to his resignation, Gigliotti clandestinely inserted "language into a bill to eradicate funding for Pittsburgh City Court."[9] Following his release from prison, Gigliotti took a job as a parking attendant with Alco Parking in Pittsburgh.[4] Frank J. Gigliotti died peacefully on Sunday August 7, 2011 in West Melbourne, Florida. He is survived by his daughter Regina Feeney and her daughter Samantha of Merritt Island Fl., Frank Gigliotti Jr. of Sarasota, Fl., & Christina and Darrell Costellic and their 3 children Toni, Petie and Ryan of West Melbourne, Fl. Formerly married to Joanne (Zitelli) Gigliotti and survived by brothers Anthony Gigliotti, Michael Gigliotti, Sister Theresa Curry, and many nieces and nephews.

• Article on the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

• "Frank J. Gigliotti (Democrat)". Archived from the original on January 25, 2000. Retrieved April 22, 2009. Official PA House profile (archived)