Guardianship firm seized by marshals

A Final Four basketball junket. Caribbean cruises and other luxury vacations. Purchases at an Albuquerque RV Center and a Mercedes-Benz dealership.

The alleged lavish spending by the co-founders of one of the state’s largest nonprofit guardianship firms was financed out of the accounts of their special needs clients, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. And on Wednesday, a multiagency federal task moved to put a stop to the alleged decade-old embezzlement scheme involving millions of dollars with the indictment and arrests of the co-founders of Ayudando Guardians, a nonprofit guardian/conservator company based in Albuquerque.

Susan Harris, 70, and Sharon Moore, 62, were taken into custody Wednesday, and both women are to appear at detention hearings today at 9:30 a.m. in U.S. District Court in Albuquerque.

State court records show Ayudando as having been appointed by state district judges to serve as guardian, conservator or personal representative in more than 350 cases since 2000. The company’s publicly available 990 tax form for 2015 said the company provides guardian and conservator services to the elderly, veterans, the disabled and the homeless.

The 28-count federal criminal indictment alleges millions of dollars were embezzled from client accounts since the company was created in November 2006. The charges include conspiracy, mail fraud, aggravated identity theft and money laundering.

“This case is all about the victims,” acting U.S. Attorney James D. Tierney said in a press release. “The victims in this case relied upon Ayudando to manage their finances and meet their needs. If the allegations in the indictment are true, the principals of Ayudando cruelly violated the trust of their clients and looted their benefits. Federal law enforcement has now stepped in to ensure that the looting stops.”

Efforts to reach defense attorneys for Harris and Moore were unsuccessful late Wednesday.

According to the indictment, Ayudando receives government benefit payments from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and U.S. Social Security Administration on behalf of many of its clients, and acts as a fiduciary or representative payee for these clients by paying their expenses and maintaining the balances for the benefit of the clients.

The actual number of clients whose accounts have been affected wasn’t detailed in the U.S. Attorney’s Office press release, which said the corporation provides services, including financial management, to hundreds of individuals with special needs.

Ayudando also is under contract with the state Developmental Disabilities Planning Council to provide guardianship services to New Mexico residents who are eligible for Medicaid or a similar public benefit and who have been deemed incapacitated.

The company’s 2017 contract with the state was capped at $640,800, according to state records. Under the contract, the company was supposed to purchase a bond for the indemnification of losses and submit to audits.

In addition, court-appointed guardians and conservators are required to submit to the court an annual report and/or financial accountings for each client.

Marshal take over
 
The U.S. Marshals Service on Wednesday took control of Ayudando’s business operations to ensure that victims of the crimes charged, who include disabled veterans, continue to receive the “services they deserve and are entitled to,” U.S. Marshal Conrad E. Candelaria said in a press release.

Federal authorities also received a court order to take receivership of the corporation, which has its headquarters on Central SE and has an office in Mesa, Ariz., according to its website.

The order authorizes the U.S. Marshals Service to operate the business to ensure assets are not improperly spent or removed, and that the interests of Ayudando clients are protected as the criminal case goes forward.

Ayudando clients or relatives of clients who wish to speak to someone about their accounts or expenses can call Ayudando, which is being operated by the U.S. Marshals Service.

Tax forms filed by the corporation for 2015, the most recent year for which records are available, show Harris earned $138,230 a year as president of Ayudando and Moore was paid $126,720 annually.

Stealing the money

The indictment described some of the ways the two women allegedly stole from clients.

For instance, Harris wrote 12 checks totaling $457,883 on the client reimbursement account from June 2011 to March 2014 for personal purposes, including checks of $50,950 made out to Mercedes-Benz of Albuquerque and $26,444 to Myers RV Center. Harris is accused of using an Ayudando credit card to pay $140,790 to cover luxury vacations for herself and others, including the cruises and a basketball junket, knowing that Moore would pay off the charges using client funds, the indictment alleges.

Harris and Moore allegedly used $392,623 from the Ayudando client reimbursement account to pay off balances on a company credit card used by the defendants and their families for personal purposes.

As part of the alleged scheme, which federal prosecutors described as “sophisticated,” Moore in 2016 allegedly mailed fraudulent documents to the VA that falsely represented balances in 10 client accounts, claiming the accounts had an aggregate balance of more than $1.9 million when the actual value was $72,281.

Ayudando, Moore and Harris also are accused of engaging in aggravated identity theft by using their clients’ names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers and VA file numbers to commit mail fraud.

The federal indictment comes at a time when the FBI is believed to be assisting in the investigation of an Albuquerque trust company operated by CEO Paul Donisthorpe.

State financial regulators have found a minimum of $4 million missing from client trust fund accounts managed by Desert State Life Management. About 70 clients are affected, many of whom are physically or mentally disabled or elderly. The money allegedly went into private companies controlled by Donisthorpe.

No criminal charges have resulted, but the U.S. Attorney’s Office has filed a forfeiture petition to seize three of Donisthorpe’s properties, alleging a scheme to defraud vulnerable clients.

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Guardianship firm seized by marshals

Employee blows whistle on guardian embezzlement case

For more than a decade, one of the state’s largest guardianship firms was routinely appointed by the courts to protect clients whose disabilities left them unable to handle their money or pay their bills.

Behind the scenes, federal officials say, Susan Harris and Sharon Moore were allegedly running up the company credit card of Ayudando Guardians to the tune of $4 million by living the life of luxury and paying the American Express bills with client trust money.

Then last June, according to court testimony Thursday, one of Ayudando’s employees assigned to pay and manage the bills walked into the office of an unidentified federal law enforcement agency and blew the whistle – alleging that supervisors were embezzling client money.

“It’s difficult to imagine a greater betrayal of trust,” said assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy Pena on Thursday just before federal magistrate Steven Yarbrough released Harris and Moore pending trial under certain conditions, including that they put up their homes as security.

Both women pleaded not guilty during the detention hearing.

Moore’s attorney, Fred Jones, told the magistrate she couldn’t afford any amount of bond for her release. “She has no money … She has no credit cards. No line of credit,” he said. Moore, according to Ayudando’s most recent 990 tax form, had a salary of $126,720 for 2015.

Harris’ attorney, Robert Gorence, said Harris should be released because she has been in the community for 40 years and has significant family ties here.

The 28-count indictment unsealed this week charges the women and the company with mail fraud, money laundering, conspiracy and aggravated identity theft.

Their arrests were the product of a year’s worth of investigation by the FBI, IRS, Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, and the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Social Security Administration, according to federal law enforcement officials who appeared at a news conference Thursday.

The indictment alleges that Ayudando, which was set up to act as a fiduciary or a representative payee for individuals needing assistance, was run by Harris as president and Moore as secretary. Part of the alleged embezzlement scheme involved Ayudando concealing the theft from some clients’ accounts by replacing the missing money with funds taken from other clients, the indictment states.

IRS Special Agent Ismael Nevarez Jr. at the news conference made reference to the company’s name.

“This contains the word ayudando, which in Spanish means, help or to help others and is especially troubling,” Nevarez said, adding that instead of helping people, the “defendants were greedy and helped themselves to their clients’ money.”

Acting U.S. Attorney for New Mexico James Tierney said the investigation was ongoing. He said authorities don’t yet know how many Ayudando clients lost funds, but prosecutors in the indictment focused on the federal violations involving 10 veterans whose Ayudando account totals were inflated when reported annually by law to the VA.

The indictment alleged the two women enjoyed a lavish lifestyle of travel with client funds.

Harris, in the indictment, is accused of writing checks from the company client reimbursement account or using the credit card for a $21,852 payment to All World Travel, and more than $17,000 for two Celebrity Cruise trips to the Caribbean isles in 2013 and 2014. Moore charged a $8,958 vacation to a resort in San Diego in 2015 and used the charge card to spend $3,479 for a 13-person vacation to San Diego last December, the indictment alleges.

Tierney said the maximum prison sentence they faced under the charges was 30 years.

The U.S. Marshals Service is managing Ayudando operations, so clients with questions or concerns can call the company at 505-332-4357. The U.S. Attorney’s office can be reached via email at USANM.Ayudando@usdoj.gov or at 505-346-6902.

New Mexico FBI assistant special agent-in-charge Derek Fuller said he and the other agents involved in the Ayudando case want to deliver a message.

“If you are managing funds for people who depend on you for your honesty and you decide to help yourself to the till,” Fuller said, “we will come after you.”

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Employee blows whistle on guardian embezzlement case

Ayudando exec testified for industry before arrest

When the new state Supreme Court commission studying guardianship reform met in May, the person who testified on behalf of professional guardians in New Mexico was Sharon Moore from Ayudando Guardians.

The same Sharon Moore appeared last week before a U.S. magistrate in Albuquerque to plead not guilty to federal charges of embezzling millions of dollars from Ayudando clients to finance a “lavish lifestyle.”

Alongside her in the courtroom was her “business partner” at Ayudando, Susan Harris, who – along with the company itself – is also charged in the 28-count indictment with criminal violations.

The indictment accuses the two women of charging up to $4 million in personal expenses, including travel, on the Ayudando company credit card and using funds from special-needs clients to pay the bills as they financed everything from cruises to luxury vehicles.

Two months earlier, Moore told the special commission that those employed by Ayudando adhered to a “model code of ethics,” and that the company had the trust of district judges who appointed it to act as guardian for clients in need of services.

According to the indictment, Ayudando receives government benefit payments from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and U.S. Social Security Administration on behalf of many of its clients, and acts as a fiduciary or representative payee for these clients by paying their expenses and maintaining the balances for the benefit of the clients.

The indictment contends that Moore, the chief financial officer, filed fraudulent reports from January to November of last year with the VA involving about 10 veterans who are Ayudando clients.

An attorney for Moore, 62, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.

Since the indictment was unsealed last Wednesday, the state Office of Guardianship, which contracts with Ayudando to represent indigent clients, has not responded to Journal questions about the company – such as whether audits were conducted or bonds were required as a condition of receiving annual contracts.

The state sunshine portal shows that since July 2009, the state has contracted to pay Ayudando more than $5.7 million to act as court-appointed guardian for clients who are indigent or are otherwise eligible for a state-paid professional company to manage their living and other expenses.

The state Office of Guardianship, which approved Ayudando’s most recent annual contract, for $640,000, has offered no explanation for its silence related to its oversight of Ayudando.

But Moore, in her testimony to the Supreme Court commission on May 12, offered some details about Ayudando’s operations.

‘We do have standards’

Moore said the company has about 185 clients, but she didn’t provide a breakdown as to how many are indigent and therefore qualify for state-paid guardianship services, and how many are private.

Moore said her company, which she said has been in existence for about 14 years, employs nationally certified guardians. Both she and Harris are on the list of New Mexico guardians certified by national Center for Guardianship Certification in Harrisburg, Pa.

Such certification isn’t required by state law but is mandated in Ayudando’s contract with the state.

Moore said state district judges in New Mexico put their trust in Ayudando when appointing the company to act as guardians or conservator or both.

“And therefore, we don’t just run amok. We do have standards,” Moore told the 16-member group in May.

The commission, which includes judges, lawyers, representatives for the aging, Governor’s Office appointees and a member of the public, was appointed by the Supreme Court in April after concerns were raised in the Journal and elsewhere that courts in New Mexico needed more oversight of the guardians, who typically operate under the public radar because such cases are deemed confidential and are sealed by law.

The checks and balances provided by the current guardianship system rely heavily on judges, who by law are supposed to review annual reports submitted by guardians as to the welfare of the “incapacitated person” under guardianship.

Additional oversight
 
In the case of Ayudando’s work for the state, there was another layer of oversight, Moore told the commission.

“We do a lot of work for the Office of Guardianship,” she said. “We are audited for sure once a year, and if there is a problem they (the office) get called in on, they come to us.”

She said the caseload for each of the 12 guardians who work for the Albuquerque-based company, can be as many as 30 clients under the Office of Guardianship contract.

But Moore added, “I try not to overwhelm them. Some might get to 30 if they have nursing home clients.”

In contrast to family members who say they have been left out of the process when a professional guardian is appointed for a loved one, Moore said her company actually helps clients or their families write letters to the judges overseeing the case if there are concerns about a guardian’s conduct.

Federal prosecutors say it wasn’t a judge or a state audit that prompted the investigation that led to the FBI, IRS, VA and Social Security Administration investigation of Ayudando. It was an unidentified Ayudando employee who contacted a federal law enforcement agency with the embezzlement allegations.

The indictment prompted one former Ayudando employee to contact the Journal via email, saying in part, “Though I am sad for some really good people working at Ayudando Guardians, I am glad to know justice is being served against this heinous agency that duped so many vulnerable adults.”

The U.S. Marshals Service, meanwhile, has assumed control of the business operations of the firm.

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Ayudando exec testified for industry before arrest

Guardianship services firm faces embezzlement and fraud charges

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Federal law enforcement officials announced Wednesday that they have indicted one of the state's largest nonprofit guardianship firms with federal conspiracy, fraud, identity theft and money laundering offenses.

The charges, which are contained in a 28-count indictment, arise out of an alleged decade-long sophisticated scheme to embezzle funds from client trust accounts managed by Ayudando Guardians, a non-profit corporation that provides guardianship, conservatorship and financial management services to hundreds of individuals with special needs.

The 28-count indictment alleges that Ayudando Guardians co-founders Susan Harris and Sharon Moore embezzled millions from their special needs clients to support lavish lifestyles including cruises and car purchases.

Both Harris and Moore were taken into custody Wednesday. The Associated Press reports both women pleaded not guilty.

The indictment includes two conspiracy counts, 10 counts of mail fraud, nine counts of aggravated identity theft and six counts of money laundering.

"The victims in this case relied upon Ayudando to manage their finances and meet their needs. If the allegations in the indictment are true, the principals of Ayudando cruelly violated the trust of their clients and looted their benefits," said acting U.S. Attorney James D. Tierney in a statement released Wednesday. "Federal law enforcement has now stepped in to ensure that the looting stops. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and its partners will conduct this prosecution in a manner that provides for the continued receipt of benefits by Ayudando’s clients while holding the principals of the company accountable for their conduct."

According to the indictment, Harris and Moore perpetrated the embezzlement scheme by:

• Setting up client trust and company bank accounts which only they controlled;
• Transferring funds from client accounts to Ayudando company accounts;
• Using client funds to pay off more than $4 million in charges on a company credit card account used by Harris, Moore and their families for personal purposes;
• Writing checks from Ayudando company accounts to themselves, cash and to cover personal expenses;
• Replenishing depleted client accounts with funds taken from other clients;
• Mailing fraudulent statements and certifications to the VA; and
• Forging and submitting forged bank statements to the VA.

The indictment details some of the alleged activity, such as the writing of 12 checks for a total of $457,883 on the Ayudando client reimbursement account for personal purpose, including a $50,950 check made out to Mercedes Benz of Albuquerque and a $26,444 check made out to Myers RV Center.

Both co-founders could face decades behind bars.

Ayudando clients or family members of Ayudando clients who need to speak with someone about their accounts or expenses should call Ayudando, which is now being operated by the U.S. Marshals Service, at 505-332-4357.

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Guardianship services firm faces embezzlement and fraud charges

Fraud charges leveled against New Mexico guardianship firm

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.- Federal prosecutors are accusing a New Mexico guardianship firm of embezzling millions of dollars from the trust accounts of their clients as part of a decade-long scheme to support what court documents describe as lavish lifestyles.

The 28-count indictment against Ayudando Guardians, Inc. and co-founders Susan Harris and Sharon Moore was unsealed Wednesday. It details charges of conspiracy, mail fraud, aggravated identity theft and money laundering.

Moore and Harris were arrested and made an initial court appearance Wednesday. They were scheduled to return to court Thursday to be arraigned.

It wasn't immediately clear if the women had attorneys. Messages left at the company's office were not immediately returned.

Ayudando — which means "helping" in Spanish — specializes in guardianship, conservatorship and financial management services for hundreds of individuals with special needs, including disabled veterans. The company receives benefit payments from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and U.S. Social Security Administration on behalf of many clients.

"The victims in this case relied upon Ayudando to manage their finances and meet their needs," said Acting U.S. Attorney James Tierney. "If the allegations in the indictment are true, the principals of Ayudando cruelly violated the trust of their clients and looted their benefits."

With a court order, federal authorities have assumed control of Ayudando's business operations to ensure the clients' interests are protected as the case moves forward.

The case comes as a special commission created by the New Mexico Supreme Court studies the state's overall guardianship system with the aim recommending ways it can be improved.

The system was thrust into the spotlight following a series of investigative articles published by the Albuquerque Journal that raised questions about the lack of oversight and transparency.

According to the indictment made public Wednesday, Harris and Moore set up client trust and company bank accounts that only they controlled and transferred funds from client accounts to company accounts.

They are accused of using client funds to pay off more than $4 million in charges on a company credit card that was used by the two women and their families for personal purposes.

The indictment also accuses them of writing checks to themselves from company accounts, replenishing depleted client accounts with funds taken from other clients and mailing fraudulent statements to the VA.

Between June 2011 and March 2014, Harris is accused of writing 12 checks that totaled nearly a half-million dollars. One check in the amount of $50,950 was made out to Mercedes Benz of Albuquerque while another for $26,444 was issued to an RV dealership.

Other spending included more than $140,000 on vacations, from cruises in the Caribbean to a college basketball Final Four junket.

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Fraud charges leveled against New Mexico guardianship firm

Fayetteville Man Arrested for Financial Exploitation of Elderly Woman

Thomas Eugene Woodrum

FAYETTEVILLE– A Fayetteville man has been arrested on allegations of engaging in the financial exploitation of an elderly female. Sheriff Mike Fridley released the following information concerning this arrest:

Thomas Eugene Woodrum, age 65, of Fayetteville was arrested early this morning. According to the criminal complaint filed in this matter, he has served as the Guardian and Conservator for an elderly mentally incapacitated female since December of 2002. The criminal complaint alleges that Woodrum had been writing checks to himself from this female’s account, writing checks to local stores and receiving cash back and accessing the funds in this account to pay expenses other than those incurred for and on behalf of this female. The complaint further alleges that he has failed to file the required annual reports with the Fayette County Circuit Court concerning his management of this account. The alleged misconduct covers a period of approximately two years, and it appears that the amount of money misappropriated from this account exceeds $2,000.00.

Woodrum is charged with the felony offenses of Financial Exploitation of an Elderly Person or Incapacitated Adult and Embezzlement by a Fiduciary. He also faces a single misdemeanor count of failing to file an annual report concerning his administration of this estate. He was arraigned in the Fayette County Magistrate Court and was released on a $10,000.00 bond.

“The protection of our elderly citizens and our children is one of the top priorities for the Sheriff’s Office,” said Sheriff Mike Fridley. “Our youngest and our most elderly citizens are two groups most at risk for being victimized, and it is our duty to do everything in our power to keep these vulnerable citizens safe and protect them from being abused and exploited.” This incident remains under investigation by the Detective Bureau of the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office.

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Fayetteville Man Arrested for Financial Exploitation of Elderly Woman

Contra Costa DA Faces Possible Felony Embezzlement Charges

The state Attorney General's Office is considering filing felony embezzlement charges against a Bay Area district attorney for his alleged personal use of campaign funds, according to court documents obtained by NBC Bay Area on Tuesday.

The investigation into Contra Costa County District Attorney Mark Peterson stems from his alleged use of $66,000 in campaign monies for personal expenses, according to an affidavit filed by the state AG's Office. A search done last month of Peterson's bank accounts revealed campaign committee funds were used to pay for items at grocery and jewelry stores and other retailers such as Guitar Center, court documents show. Committee funds were also transferred multiple times into Peterson's personal bank accounts.

According to a search warrant return, investigators last week detained Peterson in Antioch while they seized his iPhone, iPad and appointment calendar as evidence to support felony charges.

"There's no doubt that what's happened to Mr. Peterson casts shadows over the employees at the office and the good work we do every day," deputy district attorney Kristen Busby said.

Peterson says he simply borrowed the money and had intended to pay it back. But the affidavit says Peterson failed to disclose he'd borrowed any money. Investigators are also considering possible felony perjury charges.

Both prosecutors and defense attorneys said the criminal investigation is warranted.

"The appearance is horrifying. The appearance is somebody who's committing crimes is prosecuting other people," defense attorney Dan Russo said. "He's a bright guy, he's a good lawyer. What was he thinking?"

Peterson not only faces the possible criminal charges, but a civil grand jury also filed an accusation calling for his removal from office. He will appear before a judge on that matter Wednesday.

Peterson did not respond to repeated requests for comment Tuesday.

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Contra Costa DA Faces Possible Felony Embezzlement Charges

Former Charleston lawyer indicted on embezzlement charges

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- A once prominent lawyer in Charleston has been indicted on embezzlement charges.

According to Kanawha County Prosecutor Rob Schulenberg, Richard Michael Martin is facing 21 counts of embezzlement.

Martin worked at Michael Martin and Associates Law in Charleston. His law license was annulled in January 2015.

Schulenberg says there are potentially several hundred victims in this case.

An investigation was done by the West Virginia Insurance Commission and West Virginia State Police.

Martin's trial is scheduled for July.

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Former Charleston lawyer indicted on embezzlement charges

Tooley's Cafe owner indicted on embezzlement, elder exploitation charges

The Henderson County grand jury has indicted the owner of Tooley's Cafe on several embezzlement and elder abuse charges, District Attorney Greg Newman confirmed Friday.

According to online court records, Kim Ellen Justice is charged with four felony counts of embezzlement and with three counts for exploitation of an elder adult. Newman said Justice is accused of taking millions of dollars from an elderly customer.

The indictments were handed down Wednesday, and more charges are expected to be brought in the coming weeks, Newman said.

Justice came in contact with an elderly man who would frequent Tooley's Cafe two years ago and formed a friendship with him, said a source close to the case who asked not to be named.

On Aug. 21, 2014, Thomas Byrne signed over his power of attorney rights to Justice, according to Henderson County register of deeds online records.

Then, over the next several months, Justice began transferring funds from Byrne's bank and investment accounts and taking the money, the source said.

“There are a lot of sad situations with the elderly and criminal activity,” Newman said. “If there's enough to support a charge, then the law enforcement agencies will charge someone.”

After an investigation was completed by the State Bureau of Investigation, authorities determined that there was enough information to bring charges against Justice, Newman added.

When contacted Friday by the Times-News, Justice said she did not want to comment on the charges.

The spokesperson for the State Bureau of Investigation could not be reached Friday because of the Good Friday holiday.

The Henderson County Courthouse also was closed on Friday, so court documents were not available.

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Tooley's Cafe owner indicted on embezzlement, elder exploitation charges

Former commissioner charged with embezzlement

ALLEGAN, Mich. (WOOD) — A former Allegan County commissioner is facing embezzlement charges after he allegedly stole thousands of dollars from his friend’s bank account.

Terry Burns was formally charged Wednesday with embezzlement of between $20,000 and $50,000 or more from a vulnerable adult.

He could face up to 10 years in prison for allegedly taking money from his friend Joe Migas after he petitioned to become Migas’s guardian.

The initial petition in September 2012 said that Migas stated his “long friend” Burns would be a “good guardian and special conservator.” Burns wrote in the petition to become guardian that his friend Migas needed his help because the older man had severe dementia, a heart condition and Parkinson’s disease.

In March 2013, Burns sold property Migas owned to pay off some of the man’s debts.  He deposited more than $167,000 into Migas’s account — of which he was the conservator — in July of that year.

Several weeks after the deposit, Migas’s girlfriend and caretaker contacted Migas’ bank, saying that money had been “improperly removed, diverted or stolen” from the account.

The bank began an investigation that revealed “unusual activity” in the account, which included $80,000 being removed by Burns within a 90-day period. It contacted the court in November 2013.

The bank stated more than $18,000 had been withdrawn from Migas’s account through checks written out to cash. The documents also allege Burns took out thousands of dollars at a time from Migas’s account and put it directly into his own.

Burns said in court documents that some of that money went to home improvements for the residence where Migas lived.

When Burns was asked about the money, the documents say, he told the court that Migas agreed to loan him $30,000 for his run for state representative — a race he dropped out of.

Burns posted on his Facebook page in November that he “borrowed a significant amount of money from the guardianship account which was under my control!” He went on to apologize for his actions and stated all the money had been paid back to Migas.

24 Hour News 8 saw Burns agreed to pay $16,000, but did not see any payment beyond that in probate court documents.

Burns told 24 Hour News 8 over the phone he was shocked by the criminal charges against him.

“I don’t know what they’re doing, but that other than that I have no comment,” Burns said. “We’ll figure that out in court.”

He said he is not guilty.  He also stated that he couldn’t say more about the issue and directed 24 Hour News 8 to speak to his attorney. He left jail on a $5,000 personal recognizance bond.

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Former commissioner charged with embezzlement