Campaign reports deferred for Buncich; feds have his records
Post-Tribune
April 20, 2017
Lake County Sheriff John Buncich will get an extension to file his campaign finance reports because federal investigators have the documentation he needs.
The Board of Elections and Voter Registration on Tuesday granted the extension after officials learned the sheriff does not have the records needed to fill out the forms because they were seized by the FBI as part of the investigation of an alleged towing scheme. Buncich was indicted in November on public corruption charges.
Michelle Fajman, election board director, said Buncich sent a letter to the board requesting the extension due to his situation. This is the first time the sheriff has been late filing a required campaign finance document.
"He does not have the documentation he needs in his possession," Fajman said.
Buncich, former Lake County Chief of Police Timothy Downs and William Szarmach, of CSA Towing in Lake Station, in November were named in a multicount indictment alleging an illegal towing scheme in which the sheriff accepted bribes in the form of thousands of dollars in cash and donations to his campaign fund, Buncich's Boosters, according to court records. All three are facing charges of wire fraud, while Buncich and Szarmach also are charged with bribery.
The sheriff, whose department was in charge of deciding which companies were called for towing services, and the chief allegedly steered business toward towing operators in exchange for cash and checks, the U.S. attorney alleged in the 14-page indictment. Buncich allegedly took more than $25,000 in cash bribes and $7,000 in checks from Szarmach and another towing operator identified as "Individual A," according to the indictment.
Buncich and Szarmach pleaded not guilty during their initial appearances in November.
Downs struck a plea agreement with the U.S. attorney's office, which a federal judge has not yet accepted, admitting he allegedly cooperated with Buncich to solicit brides from tow-truck operators for favorable treatment. Buncich's trial has been postponed to August.
Buncich was one of three politicians to receive a deferral from the election board. Others included:
•Former Calumet Township Trustee Mary Elgin, who, along with three co-defendants, was charged in December 2014 with using the Calumet Township trustee's office and employees to help run election campaigns. She also is charged with lying to federal investigators, trying to extort a township vendor and not filing her federal income tax returns. The case is scheduled for jury trial May 8 before Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen, according to the clerk's office for the U.S. District Court of the Northern Indiana District.
Elgin, in her request to the election board for an extension, said she has recently moved and she received a reminder days after the Jan. 18 filing deadline.
Fajman said this is the sixth time Elgin has been late with a campaign finance filing, but she has no outstanding fines. Potential fines for the infraction, once rectified, range from $120 to $300.
•The third individual granted an extension was former Coroner David Pastrick. Pastrick served as coroner from 2002 to 2009 and as current Coroner Merrilee Frey's second in command for 10 months when she first took the job in 2013.
This is the eighth time Pastrick has been late filing his campaign finance reports. He has an outstanding balance of $650. Fajman said Pastrick is working to close out his committee. He is facing new fines ranging from $160 to $400, though the election board has the discretion to waive new fines because he is closing the committee.
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