Patch Staff
NEW YORK CITY — Drainage pipes put under buried bodies. Debris dumped at a cemetery that could contaminate the Bronx River. Disregard for human remains.
A longtime employee of Trustees of St. Patrick's Cathedral, which manages the famed cathedral's properties, contends he blew the whistle on the corrupt manager behind dangerous conditions in church-owned cemeteries, according to a lawsuit filed Monday in Manhattan court.
In return for Louis Bertuzzi's honesty, in February, he was fired, the lawsuit contends.
"These actions violated not only the law, but also offend basic human decency," the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit doesn't seek a specific amount, but seeks Bertuzzi's lost wages and benefits, as well as damages.
Representatives for the trustees, as well as Bertuzzi's attorney, Joseph Jeziorkowski, didn't return Patch's requests for comment.
A spokesperson for the Archdiocese of New York, which is named as a defendant in the lawsuit, said they only just learned about the lawsuit. They said the archdiocese does not and cannot comment on pending litigation.
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