Federal
corruption
investigation
in
Macomb
and
Wayne
County
targets
prominent
businessmen
and
public
officials By
Wendell
Bryant
Tell Us
Detroit
DETROIT
(Tell Us
Det) -
US
Eastern
Michigan
District
Federal
Court
records,
which
were
improperly
unsealed
and fell
into the
hands of
the
Detroit
News in
recent
days,
reveal
the
names of
prominent
businessmen
and
public
officials
who are
under
investigation
by the
Justice
Department
in a
multi-county,
multi-year
corruption
probe.
The
investigation
stems
from a
case
against
Detroit
businessman
Gasper
Fiore,
the
owner of
Boulevard
&
Trumbull
Towing.
In the
last
part of
December
2017
Gasper
entered
into a
plea
agreement
with the
U.S.
Attorney's
Office.
Fiore,
57, of
Grosse
Pointe
Shores,
pleaded
guilty
on
December
20, 2017
of
conspiring
to
commit
bribery,
in
connection
with a
municipal
towing
contract
in
Clinton
Township.
The plea
agreement
calls
for
Fiore to
serve 1
1/2 to 2
years in
prison
with up
to 3
years
supervised
release
and a
$250K
penalty.
"This
guilty
plea
should
reassure
citizens
that
those
who
endeavor
to
entice
public
officials
through
bribery
and
kickback
schemes
can
count on
encountering
the
formidable
investigative
resources
of the
FBI and
our
partners,
and will
be held
to
account
for
their
corrupt
practices",
said
Special
Agent in
Charge
David P.
Gelios,
Detroit
Division
of the
FBI.
According
to the
Detroit
News the
filing
contains
a list
of
“target
subjects”
that
includes
several
public
officials
and
local
businessmen.
Among
them:
Romel
Casab,
former
owner of
the
Packard
plant in
Detroit,
former
Rizzo
Environmental
Services
CEO
Chuck
Rizzo,
Sheriff
Benny
Napoleon,
former
Macomb
County
Public
Works
Commissioner
Anthony
Marrocco,
Wayne
County
Circuit
Judge
Vonda
Evans,
Detroit
City
Councilman
Gabe
Leland,
resigned
state
Rep.
Brian
Banks
and
retired
state
Rep.
Alberta
Tinsley-Talabi.
After
learning
of the
story in
the
news,
Napoleon
issued
this
statement:
"I had the privilege of serving the citizens of Detroit as a police officer for 26 years, retiring as Chief. Since July 2009, I have continued to serve the community as Wayne County Sheriff. During that entire time, there has never been a hint of impropriety. Gasper Fiore was a vendor for Wayne County. As a vendor, he and I would at times talk when there were questions or issues with his contract. As Sheriff, I am required to answer those questions and attempt to resolve those issues when they are brought to my attention. I never attempted to influence the awarding or implementation of a towing contract. Any suggestion to the contrary is so ridiculous as to deserve no further comment."
Fiore
admits
he
attempted
to bribe
Clinton
Township
Trustee
Dean
Reynolds
in
exchange
for
lucrative
municipal
contracts.
This
case is
part of
the
government’s
wide-ranging
corruption
investigation
centered
in
Macomb
County,
Michigan.
The
investigation
of this
case was
conducted
by the
Federal
Bureau
of
Investigation
and the
Internal
Revenue
Service.
The case
is being
prosecuted
by
Assistant
U.S.
Attorneys
David A.
Gardey,
R.
Michael
Bullotta,
and
Adriana
Dydell.
I
HI TECH NEWS
I
SPORTS
I
