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Federal authorities on Friday morning descended on multiple locations in Philadelphia, including the offices of IBEW Local 98 and the home of labor leader John Dougherty.
The FBI said agents were at the electricians union hall at 17th and Spring Garden streets in Spring Garden for an "ongoing investigation."
Investigators also raided Dougherty's home on Moyamensing Avenue in South Philadelphia and his bar, Doc's Union Pub, located on South 2nd Street, in addition to offices at City Hall, according to an FBI spokesperson.
Reached by phone on Friday morning, Dougherty said he declined to comment on the investigation, beyond what he told reporters outside of his home: "Nothing has changed in my house except maybe for the tomato plants in the backyard," he said, referencing a previous FBI raid of his home in November 2006.
But he took to Facebook early Friday evening to wishing everyone an enjoyable weekend and saying he's been through investigations previously.
Authorities raided not only the office of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98 but also the home of its powerful leader, John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty, who is also head of the Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council. In addition, law enforcement searched a pub run by Johnny Doc and other union bosses, as well as the offices of a labor-connected Philadelphia city councilman.
The searches occurred just a week after Johnny Doc and the construction unions played a central behind-the-scenes role at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia. Earlier this year, Johnny Doc had accompanied Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney and Congressman Bob Brady for a meeting with Hillary Clinton to discuss union issues, including project-labor agreements, posing for a photo with her