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Current Headlines
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DGIF officials indicted: Richmond Times-Dispatch (AP Story) |
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3 former Va. game department employees indicted
Thursday, Sep 20, 2007 - 08:24 PM Updated: 09:33 PM
By KRISTEN GELINEAU
The Richmond multi-jurisdiction grand jury indicted former department director William Woodfin Jr. and former game wardens Michael Caison and Terry Bradbery on Sept. 12. The indictments were unsealed Thursday.
Woodfin and board chairman Dan Hoffler, a Virginia Beach developer, resigned in 2005 after a 51-page audit accused department officials of waste, cronyism, misuse of state property and retaliation against employees after it was revealed that Woodfin, Hoffler, Caison and Bradbery went on a 2004 African safari. Although Hoffler eventually picked up the tab for the trip, the audit questioned purchases of hunting gear for the excursion charged to state credit cards.
According to the state audit report, Hoffler gave Woodfin, Bradbery and Caison almost $50,000 worth of gifts. Two watercraft and an all-terrain vehicle owned by the agency were kept at Hoffler's waterfront home on the Eastern Shore, the audit found.
Each of the counts is a felony punishable by two to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. Caison and Woodfin each face two counts; Bradbery faces one. Hoffler is not named in the indictment.
Bradbery plans to enter a plea of not guilty, said his attorney, Murray Janus.
"I'm not aware that any law has been violated _ I just don't see the offense," Janus said. "The state is not out any money whatsoever. This trip was approved. There was no state time that was used."
Caison's attorney, Craig Cooley, said "Mr. Caison certainly believes he has done nothing wrong _ no criminal act _ and we anticipate taking it to trial."
Joe Owen, attorney for Woodfin, said he plans to file a Bill of Particulars to find out what was done criminally.
"I have yet to see any activity that appears to be criminal in any way," Owen said.
In a statement, Hoffler said he was extremely disappointed to hear of the indictments and said he had cooperated with the investigation.
"I sincerely hope this does not tarnish the reputation of the department, which is without question one of the best in the nation," he said.
Bradbery and Woodfin were served their indictments in court on Tuesday, and were released on $5,000 personal recognizance bonds, said J. Tucker Martin, a spokesman for the attorney general's office. Caison was served his indictment in court Thursday and released on a $5,000 personal recognizance bond.
All three were ordered to return to court Nov. 5, at which time a trial date will be set.
No other indictments are being sought, and the prosecution will be handled jointly by the offices of the Richmond commonwealth's attorney and the Virginia attorney general, Chief Deputy Attorney General William Mims said in a statement.
The game department released a statement noting that Woodfin, Caison and Bradbery are no longer affiliated with the agency, with Board of Game and Inland Fisheries Chairman James Hazel adding: "This issue is now a matter for the courts."
Mims said that as a result of the investigation, his office will propose legislation during the 2008 General Assembly session that specifically targets the game department and the state and local governments regarding the obligation to be "a good steward of our citizens' tax dollars."
Former State Police Superintendent Gerald Massengill was summoned out of retirement by former Gov. Mark R. Warner in 2004 to serve as the department's interim director and to help clean it up. Massengill instituted new controls over the department's accounting procedures and the way its money is spent. He remained in the post until October 2006.
Messages left with the commonwealth's attorneys office were not immediately returned.
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DGIF officials indicted: Washington Post |
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3 Ex-Game and Fisheries Officials Indicted
Men Charged With Misusing State Funds; Agency's Finances Questioned for Years
By Anita Kumar
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, September 21, 2007; Page B06
RICHMOND, Sept. 20 -- The former director of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and two other former department employees have been charged with misusing state money, according to indictments unsealed Thursday.
The indictments, handed up Sept. 12 by a grand jury in Richmond Circuit Court, follow several investigations into a department that has faced years of accusations of improper spending, questionable travel expenses and retaliation against whistle-blowing employees. Such public corruption indictments are rare in Virginia government.
"These indictments by the grand jury reflect the Commonwealth's continuing commitment to thoroughly investigate the prior financial activities" at the department, Chief Deputy Attorney General William C. Mims said in a statement.
Few details were available about the allegations, which center on former director William L. Woodfin Jr., Terry C. Bradbery, former chief of the agency's law enforcement division, and Michael G. Caison, former assistant chief of the division. The 500-employee department is responsible for the management of inland fisheries, wildlife and recreational boating.
A previously released state audit in 2005 revealed that the three spent more than $11,000 of state money on hunting gear for an African safari. The money has since been repaid.
State Internal Auditor John A. Spooner called the allegations in the audit among the most serious in recent history in Virginia, which has a national reputation as a well-run state.
Spooner, who was hired after the 2005 audit was conducted, said the case is high-profile because it involves department leaders and a substantial amount of money.
After the audit, the department underwent several changes so that state officials would have more control over money, equipment and travel. The attorney general's office also plans to propose legislation during next year's General Assembly session to help safeguard state money.
Woodfin and the agency's former board chairman, Dan Hoffler, a wealthy Virginia Beach developer, resigned in 2005 after the 50-page audit accused department officials of waste, cronyism, misuse of state property and employee retaliation.
Woodfin, Hoffler, Bradbery and Caison went on a two-week African safari in September 2004.
Hoffler paid for the trip, but the audit questioned the purchases made for the trip, totaling $11,532, which were charged to state credit cards.
Hoffler said in a statement Thursday that he was "extremely disappointed" to learn about the indictments, adding: "I have personally cooperated with the Attorney General's investigation and will continue to provide any information they may require. I sincerely hope this does not tarnish the reputation of the department, which is without question one of the best in the nation."
The audit also accused the four men of an appearance of a conflict of interest in several instances:
Hoffler gave the other three men $50,000 in gifts in 2004. Two boats and an all-terrain vehicle owned by the agency were kept at Hoffler's waterfront home on Virginia's Eastern Shore. Game wardens were assigned to provide security at an annual dove hunt at his estate. And two agency employees, including Bradbery, were cited in the operation of a personal business on state time.
"This issue is now a matter for the courts," James W. Hazel, chairman of the Board of Game and Inland Fisheries, said in a statement.
The audit stemmed from complaints to the state employee fraud, waste and abuse hotline in 2004.
The trip was planned as a state-funded visit to study game-conservation policies in Zimbabwe but was rejected by Secretary of Natural Resources W. Tayloe Murphy Jr.
After the audit, the state attorney general's office, with the Virginia State Police and Richmond commonwealth's attorney's office, began investigating thousands of pages of records from 1999 to 2004. The charges in the indictment stem from 2003 and 2004.
Bradbery and Caison were placed on leave, then retired in spring 2006.
Woodfin and Caison were indicted on two counts and Bradbery on one. If convicted, they face felonies punishable by two to 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $100,000 for each charge. Each had an initial appearance before a judge in Richmond this week and was released on personal recognizance and ordered to appear in court Nov. 5.
The men are being prosecuted jointly by the state attorney general's office and the Richmond commonwealth's attorney's office. Mims, the chief deputy attorney general, declined to comment beyond his statement. Richmond Commonwealth's Attorney Michael N. Herring did not return a phone message left at his office.
Staff researcher Meg Smith contributed to this report.
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DGIF officials indicted: Virginian-Pilot |
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Three former Va. game officials indicted over African safari
By WARREN FISKE, The Virginian-Pilot
© September 21, 2007
RICHMOND
Three former top officials at the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries have been indicted on charges of misusing state funds to buy supplies for a 2004 African safari, according a spokesman for the a ttorney g eneral's office.
A Richmond multi -jurisdictional grand jury indicted William L. Woodfin Jr., the agency's former director, and former game wardens Michael G. Caison and Terry C. Bradbery on Sept. 12, the attorney general's office announced Thursday.
"All the charges are related to purchases made on state credit cards prior to the trip to Africa in 2004," said Tucker Martin, spokesman for the a ttorney general's office.
The three indicted men were criticized in a 2005
audit for running up $11,532 on state credit cards to supply a two-week safari they went on with then-board Chairman Dan Hoffler, a Virginia Beach developer. Hoffler eventually reimbursed the state.
Hoffler resigned his post after the release of the 52-page audit, which said the agency was rife with cronyism, waste and misuse of state property. Woodfin, Caison and Bradbery retired.
No other indictments are being sought in the case, said William C. Mims, chief deputy attorney general.
Bradbery plans to plea not guilty, said his attorney, Murray Janus.
"I'm unaware of any laws that have been violated," he said. "The state is not out any money."
Woodfin's lawyer, Joseph Owen, said he was surprised by the indictments. He said Woodfin "had permission from superiors to do everything he did."
An attorney for Caison did not return phone calls.
The indictments end a long silence over the state's response to allegations of abuse at the agency since the audit was turned over to law enforcement authorities in May 2005.
In late 2005, Republican Bob McDonnell, campaigning for attorney general, accepted $25,000 in contributions from Hoffler. McDonnell, after his inauguration the following January, ceded authority on game department matters to Mims. Several outdoor enthusiasts questioned whether the office was letting the investigation slide.
Hoffler, in a written statement Thursday, said he was "extremely disappointed" by the indictments and that he cooperated with the investigation.
"I sincerely hope this does not tarnish the reputation of the department, which is without question one of the best in the nation," he wrote.
The indictments say the misuse of state funds occurred from Sept. 1, 2003, through Oct. 31, 2004. During that time, the audit documented an array of state credit card charges made or sanctioned by Caison, Woodfin and Bradbery.
Many of the expenses were first disclosed by The Virginian-Pilot in early 2005.
On Sept. 3, 2004, Woodfin had an employee purchase an international phone, which was taken to Africa and used to make calls to Virginia, including the travelers' homes, at a cost of $1,472.
In August and September of that year, Bradbery bought three lightweight hats, food, batteries, film, bags, tape, car wax, towels, medicines, snacks, three vaccinations shots, two pairs of shoes, three jackets and four pairs of pants. The total cost was $2,287.
From July through September, the agency bought - at Bradbery's or Caison's request - four bullet-proof double rifle cases, four walking sticks, 20 combination locks, three digital cameras, neck pillows, duffle bags and carry-on luggage. The total cost was $7,354.
Caison, in early September, bought four DVD players and four binocular straps for $419.
Hoffler, according to the audit, came up with idea to go on the safari, saying he wanted the agency's top officials to learn about conservation efforts in Africa.
Under Virginia law, only people with direct access and custody of public money can be charged with misusing state funds. Mims said he will ask the General Assembly next year to broaden the law to include people who do not have direct access to public funds but knowingly participate in their abuse.
The audit that led to the indictments was prompted by complaints filed with the Virginia State Employee Fraud, Waste and Abuse Hotline in late 2004. The abuses were uncovered by Lee Albright, a Navy retiree who lives in Nelson County.
"This is a good day for the game department," Albright said Thursday. "I don't take any personal satisfaction in seeing these guys getting indicted, but this is a big step in removing a black cloud from the department."
Warren Fiske, (804) 697-1565,
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DGIF officials indicted: Roanoke Times |
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Game officials indicted
The three former DGIF officials are accused of misusing state funds.
By Mark Taylor
981-3395
A grand jury has indicted three former top officials with the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries for misusing state money in 2004.
Former director William Woodfin Jr. and former game warden Michael Caison each face two counts of misuse or misappropriation of state funds, while former game warden Terry Bradbery faces one count.
Each count is a felony punishable by two to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $100,000.
"These indictments by the grand jury reflect the commonwealth's continuing commitment to thoroughly investigate the prior financial activities at DGIF," Virginia Chief Deputy Attorney William Mims said in a prepared statement.
A 51-page state auditor's report released in May 2005 outlined numerous cases of fiscal improprieties, cronyism and retaliation within the upper levels of the agency, which manages Virginia's wildlife, freshwater fishing and boating programs.
Among other things, the audit questioned $11,532 Woodfin, Caison and Bradbery spent to outfit themselves for a September 2004 African safari, a trip largely bankrolled by Virginia Beach developer Daniel Hoffler, who was chairman of the agency's board of directors.
Woodfin retired effective June 1, 2005, just days after the report was made public.
Bradbery, former chief of the agency's Law Enforcement Division, and Caison, former assistant chief of the division, both retired the following spring.
Hoffler, who resigned his board position before the report was released, was faulted in the audit but not named in the indictment. In a statement, Hoffler said he was disappointed to hear of the indictments and said he had cooperated with the investigation.
"I sincerely hope this does not tarnish the reputation of the department, which is without question one of the best in the nation," he said.
Bradbery and Woodfin appeared in court Tuesday. Both were given $5,000 personal recognizance bonds.
Caison was served his two indictments Thursday, given a $5,000 personal recognizance bond and ordered not to leave Virginia.
All three are due back in court Nov. 5, when a trial date will be set.
Attorney Murray Janus, who is representing Bradbery, said his client plans to enter a plea of not guilty.
"I'm not aware that any law has been violated -- I just don't see the offense," Janus told The Associated Press. "The state is not out any money whatsoever. The trip was approved. There was no state time that was used."
Attorneys for the other men did not immediately return calls seeking comment.
Tucker Martin, a spokesman for Attorney General Bob McDonnell, said no more indictments are anticipated in the case.
Jimmy Hazel, the board's current chairman, said in a statement that the agency's leaders had no comment regarding the indictments.
"This issue is now a matter for the courts," Hazel said.
In the summer of 2004, Woodfin, Bradbery and Caison requested state funding for a trip to Zimbabwe with Hoffler.
The officials claimed the trip would be beneficial to see how officials in Zimbabwe managed their wildlife resources.
When the request was denied, Hoffler, who had hunted previously in Zimbabwe, covered most of the costs of the safari. After the investigation began, board members chipped in more than $12,500 to cover disputed costs related to the trip.
In all, according to the audit, Hoffler gave Woodfin, Caison and Bradbery gifts worth $50,000.
The safari and other questionable spending came to light after activists Lee and Paulette Albright of Montebello used the Virginia Freedom of Information Act to request agency financial records in the fall of 2004.
The Albrights had started seeking information from the agency a couple of years earlier because they disputed the DGIF's claim that financial difficulties were forcing the closure of the Montebello fish hatchery to visitors.
What started out as a simple request for information on the hatchery situation grew more sweeping as the couple felt the agency was being dismissive of their requests.
The couple eventually obtained roughly 3,000 pages of documents showing agency leaders' spending history.
"We had no idea it was that serious," Lee Albright said Thursday.
The Richmond Times-Dispatch published a story on Christmas Day 2004 detailing the questionable spending, and the state auditor's office soon began its investigation. After the audit report was released, state officials announced a criminal investigation.
But when two years passed without action, Albright grew more concerned.
"We were wondering if anything would ever happen," he said.
Further complicating the issue, public records showed that Hoffler and his company, Armada Hoffler, contributed $12,500 each to Attorney General Bob McDonnell's campaign in late 2005.
Several months later McDonnell ceded authority on the case to Mims, who addressed the length of the investigation in his statement.
"Based on the report submitted by the State Internal Auditor in 2005, the Office of the Attorney General, in conjunction with the Virginia State Police and Richmond Commonwealth's Attorney's Office, has systematically and exhaustively investigated this matter to determine if criminal conduct occurred," Mims said. "The time frame of the investigation spanned a five-year period from 1999 to 2004 with many thousands of pages of records being reviewed and numerous interviews being conducted."
The department, whose annual budget is about $45 million raised primarily through license sales and from federal funding, has changed procedures in the wake of the audit.
Many of the changes were implemented under the watch of retired state police superintendant Gerald Massengill, who served as the agency's interim director after Woodfin's ouster until Carlton Courter took over in November.
Among the many changes, fiscal oversight has been tightened in an effort to better track who is spending money and what they're buying.
Staff writer Michael Sluss, Warren Fiske of The (Norfolk) Virginian-Pilot and The Associated Press contributed to this report. |
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Grand jury indicts 3 former DGIF officials |
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A grand jury has indicted the former director of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and two other former employees, alleging misuse of state funds. The Richmond multi-jurisdiction grand jury indicted former department director William Woodfin Jr. and former game wardens Michael Caison and Terry Bradbery on Sept. 12. The indictments were unsealed Thursday. (Coverage from Roanoke Times, Washington Post, Virginian-Pilot, Richmond Times-Dispatch (AP story)) (Editorials from Daily Progress, Virginian-Pilot)
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