BAYONNE – Joseph Arrigo, 45, of Bayonne admitted his role in paying bribes to a Bayonne public official for the public official’s assistance in securing projects funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced on Oct. 17.

Arrigo pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Peter G. Sheridan in Trenton federal court to a charge of one count of paying bribes totaling approximately $65,000 to a Bayonne official who served as the director of Bayonne’s Department of Community Development. Arrigo also pleaded guilty to one count of theft and conversion of government funds in the amount of $40,000, and one count of submitting a false tax return for tax year 2011.