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By Lou Grieco and Tom Beyerlein 
Staff Writers Updated 11:23 PM Friday, July 8, 2011

WASHINGTON TWP., Montgomery County — Agents of the FBI and the U.S. Transportation Department executed a search warrant Thursday afternoon at The Galleria Building, 8534 Yankee St., headquarters of a company, TesTech Inc., that is an interstate trucking cargo carrier for the department.

FBI spokesman Mike Brooks said the search warrant was sealed and he could not provide details. He said there were multiple addresses in the warrant.

The Galleria Building houses custom home builder Design Homes and Development Corp., owned by Shery Oakes; CESO Inc., a civil engineering firm owned by her husband, David; and TesTech, a geo-environmental engineering firm owned by Sherif Aziz, a business partner of Shery Oakes.

Attorney David Reed, who represents Design Homes, said the targets of the search were TesTech and CESO Testing Technology Inc., not Design Homes. He declined to comment further.

Reed was the attorney who, in February, dissolved CESO Testing Technology, according to Ohio Secretary of State’s records. David C. Oakes was the sole officer and trustee listed in the paperwork. David Oakes also owns and runs CESO Inc., a separately incorporated company also at the Yankee Street address.

In a 2004 news release, the Ohio Department of Development said Design Homes and Development, CESO, CESO Testing and TesTech collectively were “the Oakes companies.” That year, Montgomery County received $400,000 in roadwork grant money from the state to widen Yankee to support construction of the Galleria to create and retain jobs at the Oakes companies.

CESO lists the Ohio Department of Transportation as among its clients. TesTch has received a number of government contracts for transportation projects, including its role in a $26 million Interstate 75 exit realignment project, according to the company website. Formed in 1997, TesTech has 80 employees and offices in Dayton, Columbus, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Louisville and St. Louis.

A person who answered the phone at Sherif Aziz’s home said Aziz was unavailable for comment.

Aziz and Shery Oakes were co-incorporators of several Ohio businesses, according to Secretary of State’s records. They are Pyramid Properties Ltd., Mandarin Cove Ltd. and the defunct Design Castle Ltd.

Shery Oakes is listed as owner and president on the company’s website. Montgomery County real estate records also list her as the trustee for Yankee Partners, LLC, the owners of the Galleria.

The office building is assessed at $4.3 million, according to the Montgomery County Auditor’s Office.

Two agents with the Department of Transportation’s Inspector General’s office were blocking the driveway to the Galleria, 300 feet from the building.

Jill Kelley and Steve Bennish contributed to this report

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