Ex-NY chief crane inspector apologizes for taking bribes

The city's former chief crane inspector apologized at his sentencing Wednesday for taking bribes to fake inspection and licensing exam results and said other inspectors didn't deserve the notoriety he brought them.

James Delayo was sentenced in Manhattan State Supreme Court to 2 to 6 years in prison for taking more than $10,000 in payoffs.

"I'd like to apologize to the city in general for letting them down . . . and to my family especially and the Buildings Department, who do a difficult job and don't get recognition," Delayo, 61, said.

The charges against Delayo - filed in 2008 - stemmed from a crackdown on corruption in the construction industry that began after two deadly crane collapses, which killed nine people.

Justice Thomas Farber said imposing the sentence was difficult because of Delayo's work supervising the crane operations at Ground Zero after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

"It is with some degree of sadness I impose this sentence because I recognize Mr. Delayo is a man who is quite ill, partly due to what can be described as heroism," Farber said.

But he added the bribe-taking "crime itself was an extraordinary betrayal of public trust."

Defense attorney David Oddo said Delayo had developed severe pulmonary illnesses as a result of his work at the World Trade Center site.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. said Delayo was entrusted by the city to ensure safety. "He failed to do so, forgoing public safety for greed and putting countless lives at risk," he said.

Delayo pleaded guilty this year to receiving bribes for falsifying crane inspections. Nu-Way Crane Service Inc. and company official Michael Sackaris pleaded guilty to bribery. One employee, Michael Pascalli, pleaded guilty to a false-filing charge.