Letitia James: OPA Director Joel Bondy Should Be Arrested

City Councilwoman Letitia James says Office of Payroll Administration Director Joel Bondy's resignation from his job is not enough to make restitution for the $80 million dollar CityTime scandal:

City Councilwoman Letitia James (D-Brooklyn), one of CityTime's earliest and fiercest critics, said the administration should probe Bondy's actions, despite his resignation.

"Quitting is not enough," James said. "He should be thoroughly investigated, and I believe arrested. There's no way you can separate Mr. Bondy from this scandal. He should be held accountable."

A call to Bondy was not returned last night.

Bondy was not charged on Dec. 15, when the US Attorney's Office arrested four consultants and two relatives for allegedly swindling the system over the past five years.

Prosecutors charged them with falsifying time sheets, making payments to phantom shell companies, and siphoning off money through Chinese and Latvian banks to fund lavish lifestyles -- including the purchases of Mercedes-Benzes and two Long Island homes worth more than $3 million.

Bondy was accused of giving consultants working for Spherion -- the firm tasked with overseeing the quality of CityTime technology -- "direct access." He had worked at Spherion before being brought on to head the OPA in 2004.

Critics, from James to city Comptroller John Liu, railed against the project as its cost ballooned from $63 million when it was launched in 1998 to an anticipated $722 million.

It is considered the biggest scandal under Mayor Bloomberg's watch, and he has repeatedly said he has "zero tolerance" for corruption in his administration.

Bloomberg has "zero tolerance" for corruption in his administration?

Good grief, Charlie Brown, what baloney that is!

The CityTime crooks were stealing money FOR YEARS.

The city knew there were problems with the payroll system and the contractors involved as far back in 2003.

Then Bloomberg hired a guy who had ties to the companies involved to be OPA director and conduct oversight of the project.

And next thing you know, the project costs $600 million more than it was supposed to cost and a bunch of crooks, er, consultants are a lot wealthier.

That's zero tolerance?

Hell, Bondy deserves to be arrested and Bloomberg himself needs to be investigated and called to account for how he allowed this mess to "slip through the cracks."