Lake County tow operator charged alongside sheriff to plead guilty to corruption, tax evasion: documents
Post-Tribune
July 28, 2017
A tow truck operator charged alongside Lake County Sheriff John Buncich intends to plead guilty on charges of corruption and tax evasion, according to court documents.
William Szarmach, of C.S.A. Towing, filed documents in court Thursday changing his prior plea of not guilty and admitting his role in an alleged scheme to solicit bribes —through the form of campaign donations — in order to get more towing jobs from the Lake County Sheriff's Department. Szarmach is also expected to plead guilty to a charge of tax evasion, according to court documents.
"Based upon my experience in the towing business in Northwest Indiana, it was my belief that in order to remain on the Lake County tow list, or to increase my towing area, I would have to buy tickets to many, if not all of Sheriff John Buncich's fundraising events and pay additional cash payments," the plea agreement read.
"To become involved, to increase, or to retain my Lake County towing, beginning in 2009 and continuing through 2016, I regularly purchased tickets to Sheriff John Buncich's fundraising events by cash and check," the agreement read. "These purchases were sometimes directly with the sheriff himself, and other times, through other individuals employed by the Lake County sheriff's office, including the chief of police and co-defendant, Timothy Downs."
Buncich, former Chief of Police Timothy Downs and Szarmach were named in a multicount indictment in November alleging a towing scheme where 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.
Downs pleaded guilty in December and resigned his position at the Lake County Sheriff's Department, according to court documents.
Buncich and Szarmach pleaded not guilty to the charges after the indictments were filed in November and again in April when additional counts of wire fraud were filed with the court.
The purchases were made to reportedly get promises from the sheriff, including securing Szarmach's spot on the towing list, enlarging his heavy and light towing, getting Gary ordinance towing done by the Lake County Sheriff's Department, and getting help from the sheriff to get towing at Indiana University Northwest, according to court documents.
"To increase my Lake County towing, I simply paid more money for more towing," Szarmach said, in the plea agreement. "Sometimes these payments were in cash, other times, disguised as campaign check contributions, or sometimes a mix of both cash and checks."
In April, Buncich issued a public statement affirming his innocence.
"For those who know me and my 45 years in law enforcement, you know that I would never compromise my integrity or professionalism and cannot be guilty of these charges; trust that I would never sell my office — not for any amount. I assure you that I am absolutely innocent," Buncich wrote.
The plea deals filed by Szarmach and Downs are both contingent on their cooperation and that they provide testimony during the sheriff's August trial, according to court documents.
Szarmach pleaded guilty to charges of wire fraud, bribery and tax evasion, according to court documents. The wire fraud and bribery charges each carry a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, according to the plea agreement, and the failure to file tax returns has a maximum of one year incarceration and a fine not to exceed $100,000.
As a part of the deal, Szarmach agreed to pay $89,448 in restitution for the tax charge.
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