Former Cedar Rapids labor union manager accused of embezzlement

CEDAR RAPIDS — A federal judge has revoked pretrial release for a former local union’s business manager who last month was indicted on 10 charges of fraud and embezzlement.

Brock A. Willson, former business manager and financial secretary of Roofers Local 182 in Cedar Rapids, will remain in jail pending a bed being available in a residential reentry center — or halfway house — according to a judge’s order Oct. 13. The violations leading to the order were sealed and not available in public court documents.

Willson has pleaded not guilty to four counts of bank fraud and six counts of embezzlement from a labor organization.

He is accused of using his position to embezzle from the union between December 2020 through September 2021 by making unauthorized transactions through its checking accounts or credit card for his own expenses, according to the indictment. His expenses included, but were not limited to, payments for his vehicle loan, vehicle taxes and purchases at department stores, the records state.

Willson served in various roles over the years for the labor union that covers 18 counties in Iowa and Wisconsin, including Benton, Black Hawk, Iowa, Johnson, Jones and Linn, the indictment stated. He was a full-time employee of the union and had full access to three bank accounts and was a signatory on all three.

He also made payments from those checking accounts to pay the union’s credit card balances on charges incurred for personal use.

The indictment includes 10 payments for personal expenses. The unauthorized payments listed total nearly $6,000. His trial is set for Nov. 20 in U.S. District Court.

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