Luis Olmedo

Luis A. Olmedo (born 1935) was a New York City Councilman from 1973 to 1984. He represented the Bushwick section of Brooklyn in the city council, as a Democrat.

Life

Luis Olmedo was of Puerto Rican descent. After graduating from college Olmedo was employed in New York City as an anti-poverty worker. He worked as chairman of Los Sures to create, and then headed up the Southside United Housing Development Fund Corporation.^[1][2] He organized a number of protests against the racially biased allocations of public housing.^[2]

Olmedo was first elected in 1973 to the New York City Council from the newly redrawn 27th District, which included major portions of the Williamsburg and Bushwick sections of Brooklyn.^[1] The district as drawn was predominantly Puerto Rican.^[1] Over the course of his decade on th Council, became vice chairman of its Black and Hispanic Caucus, as well as chairman of the Council's Youth Services Committee.^[3]

Corruption charges

Council member Olmedo was arrested in 1983, and charged with extorting money from two food production companies. In evidence, it was alleged that he received $12,000 from an undercover investigator.^[4] It was alleged that Olmedo and his assistant, Carlos Castellanos, had demanded the $12,000 before approving plans by a Brooklyn fish-processing company to move to a city-owned site in Mr. Olmedo's district. He was tried the following year^[5] and convicted in federal court of conspiracy and attempted extortion.^[3] Olmedo received a sentence of a year and a day in prison.^[6]

Olmedo was automatically expelled from his councilman's seat upon conviction.^[3] He was succeeded by Nydia Margarita Velázquez, who was appointment by the Council.^[7]