Queens labor leader Brian McLaughlin pulled a switcheroo to cover up a kickback he allegedly took from the former owner of a scandal-scarred electrical company, according to federal-court papers.
Prosecutors charge that Santo “Sandy” Petrocelli Sr. gave McLaughlin a brand-new Ford Crown Victoria in February 2004.
But McLaughlin — then a Democratic Queens assemblyman — got spooked after reporters started getting anonymous letters about his activities and stashed the $32,000 car in an Albany garage, according to his indictment.
He then used campaign funds to buy a similar sedan and returned the original to Petrocelli Electric of Queens, which won lucrative contracts to maintain city traffic lights before being raided in 2006, the papers charge.