Pennsylvania Daybook

Fatal shooting: Trooper feared for his life, saw no weapon

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Leo A. Glodzik III&#8217;s bid to be placed behind bars next week at one of two federal prisons of his choosing was rendered moot Wednesday as a judge declared the decision out of his control.</p><p>Glodzik is slated to turn himself in Monday to the federal Bureau of Prisons and report to a correctional institution in Fort Dix, N.J., but had lobbied in <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/609131/leo-a-glodzik-iii-healthy-and-on-track-to-report-to-federal-prison-attorney-says" target="_blank">a motion filed earlier this week</a> for designation in either Lewisburg or Morgantown, W.Va, because of the facilities&#8217; rehabilitation programs.</p><p>In a response, U.S. District Judge A. Richard Caputo said that Glodzik&#8217;s sentence stipulates a designation to Fort Dix.</p><p>&#8220;I am without jurisdiction to amend the judgment in this case, and, as a consequence, decline to issue an advisory recommendation,&#8221; Caputo wrote in a response filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court. &#8220;Therefore, the matter is moot, and the motion is denied.&#8221;</p><p>Glodzik, 45, was <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/local/588786/leo-a-glodzik-iii-gets-30-months-in-federal-prison" target="_blank">sentenced in September to 30 months in prison</a> on charges of mail fraud, filing a false tax return, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. In a tearful lament at sentencing, the former city tower acknowledged making &#8220;poor decisions both in my business and personal life.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m embarrassed for what I&#8217;ve done to my family, to my children and my mother,&#8221; Glodzik had said.</p><p>Glodzik hatched a money-making scheme to rip off vehicle owners by overcharging them or hindering their access to vehicles that Glodzik had placed in storage, prosecutors said. Owners often would be forced to sign over their vehicle titles to Glodzik to discharge the fees.</p><p>Prosecutors said Glodzik used procedures administered through the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to transfer the vehicles&#8217; ownership, but lied on forms submitted through the mail about their actual cost. Glodzik was able to sidestep legal advertisement of the vehicles, as well as avoid making payments to the state of money received for vehicles sold at auctions.</p><p>Glodzik falsified his tax return when he claimed zero taxable income in 2008. His actual taxable income for that year was $408,618, according to charging documents.</p><p>Glodzik, in a 2015 indictment, was charged with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm after a shotgun was found at his business. He maintained that the weapon belonged to an employee.</p><p>In exchange for Glodzik&#8217;s plea, bank fraud charges against him in the Wilkes-Barre City Employees Federal Credit Union case were dismissed. The high-profile corruption case ensnared two city police officers and a pair of credit union employees.</p><style>
.neFileBlock {
	margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
	margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
	border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
	padding-bottom: 5px;
	padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
	font-size: 85%;
}
</style>
<div class='neFileBlock'>
<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/web1_Leo-Glodzik-5-15-14-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Leo A. Glodzik III is scheduled to report Monday to federal prison to begin serving a 30-month sentence. A judge denied Glodzik&#8217;s bid to be housed in one of two prisons that the former city tower had petitioned for earlier this week. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/web1_Leo-Glodzik-5-15-14-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Leo A. Glodzik III is scheduled to report Monday to federal prison to begin serving a 30-month sentence. A judge denied Glodzik&#8217;s bid to be housed in one of two prisons that the former city tower had petitioned for earlier this week. </caption0><photoCredit0>Pete Wilcox | Times Leader file photo </photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Joe Dolinsky</p><p>jdolinsky@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Joe Dolinsky at 570-991-6110 or on Twitter @JoeDolinskyTL.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Judge: Leo A. Glodzik won’t have choice of federal prisons