Political Corruption

[Towntalk]

Source: WKBN-TV 27 News

The former Mahoning County Sanitary Engineer who told investigators he used county equipment and county time to meet with a stripper that he paid for sex was forced out of his position because of a county investigation that found he steered contracts toward a New Springfield businessman convicted of several federal crimes, including bribing former U.S. Rep. Jim Traficant.

Robert Lyden was forced to resign Aug. 23 after an investigation by the county's director of human resources, Rachel Livengood, found Lyden steered several contracts since 2006, when Lyden was a part-time county employee, to Dave Sugar Excavating. Dave Sugar, the company's owner, was sentenced to seven months in federal prison in 2003 for lying to a federal grand jury about bribing Traficant for government contracts.

The report said Lyden expedited payments to Sugar, gave Sugar access to proposed plans for unbid projects, changed design plans in Sugar's favor and provided a "general sense of favoritism" for Sugar. 

"It appears that Dave Sugar Excavating, principal officer Dave Sugar, enjoys a relationship with the Mahoning County Engineer, Robert Lyden that provides a level of access that is not available to other vendors," the report says.

Lyden is also in the midst of another criminal investigation.

Lyden, records indicate, told police in September 2011 he paid a stripper for sex and the woman blackmailed him for $1,500. Records show he admitted to meeting the woman during work hours and using his county-issued SUV and cell phone to meet her. The woman, Gloria J. Prottengeier, 37, of Salem, has been charged with extortion and her case is being reviewed by a Mahoning County grand jury.

Records also indicated the state Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation assisted an investigation into possible theft-in-office charges. Mahoning County Prosecutor Paul Gains said no criminal charges against Lyden will be filed for that allegation.

He said the matter was considered resolved because officials were satisfied that he no longer worked for the county.

"We're all in agreement that it doesn't rise to a criminal level," Gains said. "We don't have any independent evidence to corroborate the existence of a threat, okay? You've got a woman who is charged, so her credibility is certainly suspect."

Lyden resigned from his $85,000 per year job after the human resources investigation. He was appointed as the county's Sanitary Engineer in 2010 by commissioners. Lyden will receive a one-time $9,991 payment for his unused vacation and sick time.

The report says the Sanitary Engineering Department distributes its own bid packages, while all other departments distribute the bids through the purchasing office.

During several projects between 2006, when Lyden was a part-time employee in the office, and several months ago, Lyden overstepped his normal role in the bidding and change-order processes. The report says Lyden made changes without first approving them with a consultant, which is normally done, and provided the changes directly to the contractor. The report says this occurred on several recent projects, including projects in Petersburg, Lake Milton and Struthers.

During one recent project in Struthers, Lyden fought for an improperly advertised contract to be awarded to Dave Sugar Excavating. The report says the estimates for bids were unpublished by the design consultant as required by state law. Dave Sugar Excavating appeared as the low bidder for the project and Lyden "vehemently advocated" the bid should be awarded instead of re-bid.

On the day county commissioners were set to vote on the bids, reports say Lyden called the sanitary engineer's office employees while he vacationed in Florida and told them to schedule a construction meeting, even though no county employee had informed him Dave Sugar won the bid. 

During that project, the report says, Lyden circumvented the change order process. The report says the consultant on the project changed the location of a sanitary line despite no perceived reason to do so at Lyden's request. The consultant provided a letter to the county stating there would be no additional cost to the county. The report says the change was likely made because it was cheaper to install the line somewhere else, though the savings was never passed on to the county. 

Lyden also personally authorized an undocumented change to a Petersburg project in 2007, which the report says circumvented normal change order procedures. The report says Lyden authorized the changes without consulting anyone and processed them differently than other design changes.

One employee told Livengood that Lyden used Sugar as a resource on design issues and discussed final design plans with him prior to the bidding process.

Others employees said Lyden personally expedited payments to Sugar when he delayed payments to other vendors.

The report says Lyden often interceded for the consulting firm Howland Companies that the report says he has personal ties to. In one case, Lyden pulled a previous recommendation from a company the day commissioners were set to approve the bid. Lyden then presented a proposal from Howland Companies for an assessment for the location of underground tanks for the state Fire Marshal that underbid the original company. The report says the Howland Company was approved after a four-month delay. 

The report also says the process surrounding plans prepared by the Howland Company differs from when other consultants handle the bids. Lyden, the report says, personally handles those plans instead of employees that normally oversee the process.

The report calls into question Lyden's attendance at the office. Employees said he usually leaves the office from about 10 a.m. until noon each day then leaves again for the afternoon.

"The employees have no idea where he goes or what county work he is involved with when is away from the office," the report says.

Sugar has been convicted of several federal crimes involving his former business, Honey Creek Contracting Company. 

Last year, Sugar was sentenced to 15 weekends in jail, three years of probation with house arrest and a $10,000 fine after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy and four counts of violating the Clean Air Act relating to asbestos removal. Records say he directed employees to perform renovations to the Weirton Steel Plant in Steubenville he had purchased without removing the asbestos.

Sugar's business in Springfield Township burned to the ground in January, causing thousands of dollars in damages. Officials said investigators found no sign of arson. Sugar said at the time that the company's records were destroyed in the fire.

In 2003, Sugar was sentenced to seven months in federal prison for perjury, obstructing justice and witness tampering for his attempt to cover for bribing Traficant. Records say he ordered an employee to create false documents and mislead FBI investigators.

Sugar testified against Traficant during the former congressman's 2002 trial in which he was sentenced to eight years in prison for racketeering and bribery.

   

[Towntalk]

Why didn't you just say the Sanitary Engeneer?

[jay]

Gerry Ricciutti will be interviewed about this latest scandal involving a Mahoning County employee.

WYCL
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