Defendant in community college lawsuit disputes claims

The firms are accused of co-conspiring with Galatolo and former Vice Chancellor Jose Nuñez to enrich themselves by defrauding the district, showering the district leaders with gifts in exchange for contract deals. Allana disputes those claims though by asserting his professional relationship predates his friendship with Galatolo and that any gift he ever provided to the former chancellor was immensely overshadowed by gifts Galatolo gave in return, according to the letter.

“The district’s allegations are flung wildly and recklessly. Importantly, information provided to the District Attorney’s Office shows that I received more in value from Mr. Galatolo than he received from myself or ABB,” Allana said in his letter to the district. “ABB is a minority firm that was founded by me, a first-generation immigrant from the Indian subcontinent. I have worked tirelessly for the past 36 years to build an engineering firm based on the highest level of integrity, honesty, and trust. Since our inception, we have completed over 10,000 projects and served hundreds of public and private entities, including the SMCCCD which we started serving in 2001. These outlandish allegations are unlike anything we have seen in our 36 years in business.”

Motives and vendettas

In addition to the letter, Allana on Tuesday joined other defendants in filing motions to strike on the grounds that the complaint fails to present enough evidence to prove wrongdoing and the statute of limitations has passed.

But unlike the other defendants, Allana was the first to argue in a letter to the district that the lawsuit is motivated by the political vendetta of Trustee Richard Holober. Allana alleges in his letter that Holober and Galatolo had a contentious relationship due to election process changes and the defendants named in the lawsuit donated to an opponent’s campaign when Holober was running for reelection in 2018.

“It is deeply problematic that these spurious, years’ old allegations surfaced only after Trustee Holober was reelected. This is ‘Holober’s war,’” read the letter. “I understand that the Board of Trustees voted to authorize this lawsuit. As stewards of the district’s limited taxpayer resources, the trustees have a duty to not only ensure this lawsuit does not end up being a waste of time and significant public funds, but that public money is not being used for one trustee’s political purposes.”

Holober did not respond to requests for comment. The district is being represented by Joe Cotchett and Anne Marie Murphy with the law firm Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy and Joe Goethals with Goethals Legal. Murphy said the filings are standard procedure and that the team stands by its case.

The first hearing for the case, being overseen by Judge Susan Greenberg, is scheduled for Oct. 19. Murphy said the case will likely take years to litigate.

“This is a very significant case, a very complex case with lots of parties. It’s an important case and as a result, there’s going to be a lot of motions,” Murphy said. “We are confident that our local district will prevail at the end but we’re not at all surprised by the motions being filed.”

Allegations

Allana is accused of showering Galatolo and Nuñez with gifts and appeared to have a close relationship with the district officials, according to the district’s complaint. The three took a trip through the Middle East together in 2017 where they lounged poolside, drank and partied, took guided tours through Dubai and traveled through Allana’s home country of Pakistan, the complaint detailed

District funds were used to pay for the trip which was meant to serve as a relationship-building voyage meant to encourage new international students to transfer to the community college district, according to the filing. Unbeknownst to the district, Allana had also paid to upgrade Galatolo’s flight seats. Allana also provided Nuñez with tickets to attend an Eagles concert, planned a trip to a wine festival with Galatolo, provided free solar project services to Galatolo for his Hawaii home and purchased an apartment near the Eiffel Tower in Paris with Galatolo and other company principles, according to the complaint.

In return, the complaint alleges Allana, Buick & Bers was awarded multiple contracts and family favors such as a job offer to Allana’s brother and a recommendation letter for the son of a Pakistani official to the University of Southern California.

Allana, Buick & Bers was also allowed to revise a bid on a solar project in 2013. The initial bid on Nov. 21 was nearly $5.5 million but fell to just more than $4.9 million on Dec. 13, the final day of the bid. Three days later, their bid fell to about $4.5 million and they were selected as the winner. The final cost of the project rose to nearly $5 million.

In his letter to the district, Allanna noted his work with the district predates his relationships with Galatolo or Nuñez by a decade. He said his firm has never overcharged the district and was selected for multiple projects based on its merits and quality of work. Insinuations to the contrary, he said, are defamatory and could lead to legal action against the district on behalf of the firm.

As for his relationship with Galatolo and gifts, Allana said the allegations are “designed to be salacious and grab headlines” and that the complaint failed to mention that the former chancellor repaid Allana by covering hotel expenses and letting him use Galatolo’s boat on multiple occasions, among other gestures.

Allana also took issue with the district naming his brother and nephew in the lawsuit, asserting the move was unnecessary and only done to bully and harass him and his firm. He also pushed back on district claims that Allana had asked Galatolo to use his political connections to convince former U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier to officiate his wedding, asserting that Galatolo offered and even if the allegation was true they would be completely irrelevant. The district’s complaint does not name Speier but asserts requests to officiate the wedding were declined while Allana said Speier “graciously accepted.”

“There is no legal basis to attack my wedding or name my family members in a lawsuit against my firm. This is a community college district, not the Godfather, and public resources should not be spent fulfilling one trustee’s personal and political retribution,” the letter read. “We do not wish to be engaged in litigation with a longtime client with whom we have accomplished so much. This lawsuit is destined to fail for the same reason the district attorney, after myriad of interviews and an investigation spanning many years, did not choose to pursue a criminal action against me or my firm.”

A criminal case against Galatolo is ongoing but has been delayed over whether a set of evidence can be used. The Court of Appeal denied a defense appeal of a judge’s order upholding the decision of the special master to allow for electronic records seized pursuant to a search warrant to be turned over to the prosecution. In addition, the California Supreme Court is deciding whether it will take the case, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

The DA said May 16 his office will set a preliminary hearing date on the assumption the Supreme Court has made its decision by then. The case was originally delayed Feb. 15.

Galatolo was arrested in April of 2022 at San Francisco International Airport after returning from vacation in Europe. The arrest resulted from a multiyear investigation after a whistleblower complaint in 2019. The district operates three colleges in San Mateo County; Cañada College, College of San Mateo and Skyline College. Galatolo began as chancellor in 2001 and resigned suddenly in 2019 amid revelations about the investigation and after the district board offered him an emeritus title to use while exploring ways to create a four-year program at the district. He was later terminated of the position that paid $467,000.

sierra@smdailyjournal.com

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