FBI tightens pressure on indicted Philadelphia union boss Johnny “Doc” Dougherty

The new extortion charges accuse Dougherty of installing his nephew in a no-show job and then together threatening a customer who balked at paying him.

• Maryclaire Dale/The Associated Press
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(Philadelphia) — The FBI rearrested a powerful Philadelphia labor leader awaiting trial in a public corruption case, suggesting federal authorities are ratcheting up the pressure before he and a city councilman go on trial in May.

The new extortion charges filed Wednesday accuse Johnny “Doc” Dougherty of installing his nephew in a no-show job and then together threatening a customer who balked at paying him for the work. Prosecutors also charged a nurse who they said cared for Dougherty’s wife with hiding the job to collect $34,000 in unemployment benefits.

Dougherty pleaded not guilty at a brief arraignment Wednesday afternoon and will remain free on the bail set when he was first charged in a sweeping indictment two years ago. His nephew and new co-defendant, a union steward charged with threatening to break a contractor’s jaw after the contractor stopped paying him, is due in court on Thursday.

Dougherty has long been a major political player in Pennsylvania, steering more than $30 million raised by the local electricians union to mostly Democratic candidates. His brother serves on the state Supreme Court.

The 2019 indictment accuses him of keeping Henon on the union payroll to push his agenda at City Hall. He and Henon, who took home a combined $200,000 salary from the two jobs, will be tried together on those charges. Dougherty also faces a separate trial with other codefendants on embezzlement and other charges in the 116-count indictment. He has pleaded not guilty on all counts.

Defense lawyer Hank Hockeimer said he was “surprised and disappointed” that Dougherty was arrested at home Wednesday while caring for his wife. A union spokesperson called the five-year investigation a ”persecution.”

Dougherty also leads the city’s Buildings Trades Council. Henon, a Democrat, has remained on the City Council while under indictment. He has also pleaded not guilty and remains free on bond.