The scandal surrounding disgraced Democrat State Auditor Troy Kelley just got worse. As Shift has reported, Kelley already faces 10-counts of criminal activity, the most serious of which carries a 20-year prison sentence. The Democrat pleaded not guilty to the charges and will stand trial in January. Federal prosecutors are also seeking “forfeiture of more than $1.4 million in cash” in addition to the criminal charges.
As of Thursday evening, Kelley faces a whole new set of charges—eight new charges for a grand total of 17 indictments to be exact. The new charges, handed down by a federal grand jury, allege that he “laundered money and evaded the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) while he was in office.” The Seattle Times,
“It includes allegations that Kelley laundered money — in the form of a $245,000 salary — that he paid himself from funds allegedly stolen from clients of his now-defunct real- estate reconveyance company, Post Closing Department.”
Federal prosecutors dropped a charge alleging Kelley lied in sworn testimony and depositions during a civil case filed against him in 2010. That charge carried a potential 20-year sentence. However, Kelley has no reason to celebrate. The new charges brought against him include five money-laundering charges, each of which carry a maximum 20-year sentence.
U.S. Attorney Annette Hayes believes she can prove Kelley “laundered money as recently as February, while he was the sitting auditor.” The new indictment adds five counts of money-laundering based on evidence that Kelley used stolen funds between 2011 through as recently as this year. The indictment also includes three counts of tax-evasion from 2011 through 2013.
Despite the new charges and though he lost the public’s trust, Kelley continues to refuse to step down. As Shift recently pointed out, if media outlets had demanded answers as to why multiple lawsuits were filed against Democrat Kelley and his private business dealings during his State Auditor campaign in 2012, our state might not be in the embarrassing corruption mess we are now in. And, perhaps most importantly, the integrity of the Office of State Auditor—an office that demands the public’s trust—may have been maintained.
Leave a Reply