Fired Edison cop who asked for lingerie show will keep health benefits for now
October 14, 2015 by admin
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EDISON — An Edison patrolman fired last week after admitting that he showed up at an area hotel in uniform and asked a woman to model lingerie for him will continue to receive government health insurance benefits as he fights his termination.
Anthony Sarni’s insurance was reinstated by Superior Court Judge Douglas Wolfson, who is hearing Sarni’s lawsuit against the town. In a hearing last week, Wolfson declined to immediately reinstate Sarni to the Edison Police Department, but asked lawyers for briefs on the case before another court hearing later this month.
Sarni’s attorneys say he has a strong case to get him back in uniform — and that his renewed health insurance is a sign of that — but the township said it will vigorously defend his firing.
“We feel confident that the township’s actions were unlawful and in violation of clearly established protections afforded not just to police officers, but to all individuals who are the subject of government action,” Sarni’s attorney Steven Cahn said in an email.
Sarni was fired last week, more than two years after he was originally suspended with pay for an encounter with a woman at the Extended Stay America hotel in Raritan Center.
PLUS: Edison cop craved private lingerie show, docs reveal
The woman told police that Sarni, while responding to a call at her room, asked her to model lingerie for him. She claimed that police had let her flush a small amount of marijuana down the toilet, which the responding officers denied. After Sarni’s shift ended, he returned to her hotel room, and again requested a show, she later claimed. Sarni was still in his police uniform and had his service weapon when he made the second alleged request — which she complied with.
An independent hearing officer issued a decision last week that threw out the charges against Sarni, who was accused of lying. Previous charges related to his conduct that night had already been thrown out, because the town waited too long to act. The town could appeal that decision, potentially setting up a lengthy and expensive legal battle.
“Allegations against this police officer are so egregious and the evidence so persuasive that I cannot in good conscience abide by the hearing officer’s decision,” Mayor Thomas Lankey, who is also the town’s public safety director, said in an emailed statement after he fired Sarni. “His actions are reprehensible for a sworn officer.”
RELATED: Edison fires cop accused of pressing woman for lingerie show
The town-hired hearing officer’s ruling starkly criticized the town’s Internal Affairs investigators, accusing a captain in the Sarni case of being disingenuous. He also ruled that Sarni only lied about his actions that night because he was afraid of leaks to the press, and was uncertain whether the IA interview was criminal or just for discipline. But the biggest problem with the town’s case is that disciplinary charges against Sarni were not filed in time.
Edison Business Administrator Maureen Ruane said the town “vehemently disagrees with the hearing officer’s decision and is confident this termination will stand.”
amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href=”https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/2190949/pdf-sarni-1.pdf”amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Anthony Sarni Internal Affairs files (PDF)amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/aamp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;
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amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href=”https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/2190949/pdf-sarni-1.txt”amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Anthony Sarni Internal Affairs files (Text)amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/aamp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;
Brian Amaral may be reached at bamaral@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @bamaral44. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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Italy’s Billionaire Lingerie King Takes Aim at Victoria’s Secret
October 14, 2015 by admin
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Sandro Veronesi, the billionaire whose Calzedonia Group sold 1.8 billion euros ($2.5 billion) worth of intimate apparel and clothing last year, is planning to challenge Victoria’s Secret on its home turf by opening his first U.S. stores.
“We will start maybe from New York, which is a fashion city, and then we will expand in the major cities,” the Italian said in a Bloomberg Television interview at Verona’s Gran Guardia Palace. “There is a dominant competitor in the United States, but that is maybe a reason why also women would like to have an alternative.”
The closely held company sells Intimissimi lingerie, Calzedonia socks and Falconeri knitwear through a network of more than 3,800 stores mainly in Europe. The 55-year-old owns 84 percent of the business and has a $2.4 billion fortune, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. He declined to comment on his net worth.
Asian Markets
The underwear maker has a handful of stores in Hong Kong and Japan, and isn’t planning on expanding further into Asia where consumers have proven reluctant to switch from domestic rivals.
“It’s a little bit easier than Asia even if still a tough job,” David Pambianco, managing director of Milan-based fashion consultancy Pambianco said by phone. “He is playing against bigger companies than him with a lot of money to invest. To be better than the others is not so easy.”
Veronesi said the U.S. stores would open in the next couple of years. He acknowledged that it may prove tricky to win over consumers in a market dominated by L Brands Inc., the owner of the Victoria’s Secret and La Senza labels. The Columbus, Ohio-based company had revenue of $11.4 billion and a market value of $24.7 billion in the year ended Jan. 31, 2015. No response was received to an e-mailed request for comment sent to L Brand’s press office.
Internal Growth
Veronesi said Bloomberg’s $2.8 billion valuation of Calzedonia is “more or less” accurate though its precise value is difficult to assess. The group has no immediate plans for an initial public offering and isn’t evaluating any acquisitions, according to Veronesi.
“We prefer to grow internally,” he said. “There are a lot of companies on sale in Europe in our business but at the moment the asking prices are very high.”
Meanwhile, Veronesi is increasingly pushing the visibility of his brands, including producing the second Intimissimi on Ice show in Verona this past weekend, a musical performance featuring costumes by his company, Olympic ice skaters and pop singer Ellie Goulding.
“Every brand is trying to communicate with customers in a better way, in a more efficient way, in a novel way, because certainly customers are tired of the same communication,” Veronesi said. “The idea is to offer a show — it’s a way to make the brand more welcoming, more interesting, more up-to-date.”