Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 22, 1992 TAG: 9201220240
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B1 EDITION: STATE
SOURCE: DAVID REED ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
HONAKER EVIDENCE PRESENTED
A federal grand jury in Roanoke began hearing testimony Tuesday in the case against Bristol Sheriff Marshall Honaker, who is accused of taking $377,700 in jail revenue and using some of the money to buy a house, two vehicles and other property.Bristol City Manager Paul Spangler said after testifying for 45 minutes that he still finds it hard to believe the magnitude of the allegations and how such a diversion could escape notice for four years.
City Treasurer Emma Muller, who also testified Tuesday, said, "I couldn't believe it. It sort of staggers the mind."
An Internal Revenue Service agent said in a U.S. District Court affidavit that Honaker diverted the money from payments to the jail for holding prisoners for the federal government and District of Columbia.
Honaker, who has not been charged with a crime, resigned last week as president of the National Sheriffs' Association and is taking a leave of absence until the investigation is completed. The sheriff has said he will not comment on the investigation.
In a raid Jan. 10, agents seized Honaker's $245,000 home and other property and found $63,281 in cash in the middle drawer of his office desk.
IRS agent Jack Bumgardner said in the affidavit that he believes there is probable cause to charge Honaker with tax evasion, money laundering, federal program fraud and mail fraud.
Asked his reaction to the case against Honaker, Spangler said, "It's basically disbelief. I want to see if it's proven."
Spangler added that Bristol officials were unsure whether the city or the state "should have caught that" and may need to fix accounting procedures. Bristol Mayor James Rector made a similar comment last week, noting that nearly all of the Sheriff's Department's $2.4 million budget is state-funded.
Walter Kucharski, state auditor of public accounts, said his department only occasionally audits the state's constitutional officers - sheriffs, treasurers, commissioners of revenue, court clerks and commonwealth's attorneys - and then only on request.
Kucharski said Friday that the City Council was ultimately responsible for overseeing the Sheriff's Department and should have supervised the jail accounts, including the prisoner reimbursements.
Bumgardner said in his affidavit that a former Sheriff's Department employee told Bristol police that double sets of books were being maintained by Honaker's department.
"I don't know if anybody in the city knew about the reimbursements except for Marshall," Muller said.