Day 11: Lake County Sheriff Buncich testifies that mishandled campaign donations were because of 'sloppy bookkeeping'
NWI Times
Aug 21, 2017
nwitimes.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/day-lake-county-sheriff-buncich-testifies-that-mishandled-campaign-donations/article_d86f3c91-cd09-54ae-8592-637a90125406.html
HAMMOND — Lake County Sheriff John Buncich admitted errors were made in the handling of campaign finance money, but continued to deny that he gave towing rights to companies for payments or promises of payments.
Much of Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip Benson's cross-examination of Buncich Monday focused on a $7,500 payment he received from towing operator and FBI informant Scott Jurgensen.
The Sept. 2, 2016 payment was the remainder of what Jurgensen owed for the 100 fundraising tickets he purchased from the Sheriff's campaign, Buncich testified.
Unlike the $2,500 received earlier, however, that money was not deposited in Buncich's campaign account.
Instead, Buncich kept the money and said he made a notation that he was going to show it as a partial repayment of loans he made to his campaign committee.
Benson, however, cited state law that the money was to have been deposited in the campaign fund. Loan repayments are to be made by check from the committee.
Not depositing the money in the campaign account was a violation of law, Benson said.
"Campaign finance," replied Buncich.
Later, when pressed further about the lack of proper procedure being followed with the money, Buncich replied, "sloppy bookkeeping."
Benson took Buncich through a notebook the sheriff kept, however, that listed how repayments of loans he made to the campaign in the past were made by checks. Buncich said the $7,500 he received from Jurgensen would have been listed later in the campaign finance report when it was time to file it.
"It would have been reported at the end of the year," Buncich said.
He was also questioned about how some money that came into his campaign was listed in his report as "anonymous" rather than the name of the person or entity making the payment. He said he relied on his accountant in putting the reports together, although he admitted he gave his accountant the information needed in filling out the forms and signed off on them.
In the morning, Benson focused on Buncich accepting political contributions on county property, something that is against the rules. Buncich maintained he didn't think that applied to political office holders.
Buncich said it costs about $200,000 to run for sheriff. He conducted successful campaigns in 1994 and 1998 before he had to step down because of term limits. He ran in 2006 but lost to former Sheriff Roy Dominguez, but then won again in 2010 and 2014.
Buncich, who is pleading not guilty to six counts of wire fraud and bribery alleging he used his authority over towing contracts to enrich himself and his campaign, is denying all wrongdoing.
Benson presented the jury with six days of testimony as well as video and photographic evidence to bolster the government's case that Buncich used his campaign fundraising as cover for a scheme to solicit kickbacks from towing firms doing business with county police.
Buncich and his defense team of Bryan Truitt and Larry Rogers, both of Valparaiso, gave the other side of the story.
Buncich took the witness stand early Thursday to deny all wrongdoing and to accuse the FBI and government informants and witnesses of setting him up.
During his testimony Thursday morning, Buncich said he never required tow companies or their owners to pay him to get on the tow list, and he never required them to buy his campaign fundraising tickets.
On Friday, Benson cross-examined Buncich in exchanges that shifted in mood over the course of six hours from impassioned, to cordial, to mockery of each other.
Buncich responded, "Absolutely not," when Benson asked him if he was accepting bribe money from tow truck owners.
Buncich was particularly incensed about an accusation he reached into William "Willie" Szarmach's tow truck April 22, 2016, and grabbed envelopes stuffed with thousands in cash off the driver's seat left by Szarmach.
"I did not get into his truck. I don't go into tow trucks," Buncich said.
Benson replayed an FBI surveillance video of the moment. Benson said, "Aren't you leaning into the truck. Aren't you bending over to take the money?"
Buncich replied, "I'm looking inside like, 'Wow,' like I care about a new truck."
Last week, Benson played a video of Timothy Downs, the sheriff's police chief and second-in-command, delivering $7,500 in campaign contributions to the sheriff's office, putting it on the sheriff's desk and Buncich shoving it into a desk drawer.
Downs was arrested in November along with Buncich and became a cooperating FBI witness and wore recording devices after having been caught collecting political donations on county government time.
The sheriff said Thursday Downs had never brought him a stack of cash like that before, but he had nothing to hide. He said the door wasn't closed and his deputy warden was in the office when Downs left the money.
Truitt argued earlier the money drops were orchestrated by the FBI. "The FBI tried to buy a crime where one didn't exist," Truitt said early on in the trial.
Joseph Hamer, an internal affairs investigator for the sheriff's department, testified he has become friends with the sheriff, who he believes has a reputation for being honest and law-abiding. "He is someone I've (idolized) for many years," Hamer said.
Gary Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson testified last week that she and the sheriff agreed to have the sheriff deploy county police officers to assist the understaffed Gary Police Department in reducing crime in the city, which included county officers towing abandoned vehicles.
Buncich said Monday that if Jurgensen and Szarmach believed they were going to continue to be the only ones doing towing in Gary for the county they were mistaken and that he intended it to be rotated among different firms.
No comments:
Post a Comment