Rogers, who pleaded guilty in December 2007 to conspiracy to commit bank and mail fraud, and to filing a false income tax return, was sentenced last month to two years in prison and five years probation by U.S. District Court Judge Sandra Beckwith in Cincinnati. She, along with three other defendants, was also ordered to pay $4 million in restitution to National City Bank.
Kircher requested Rogers serve her time in a facility within a two-hour drive of Butler County to “permit frequent and convenient visits by ... family and friends.”
The facility, just north of Lexington, houses minimum security offenders, according to Traci Billingsley, public relations officer for the Federal Bureau of Prisons. As of Aug. 18, the camp housed 303 women.
A day before her prison stint, Rogers was both angry and in tearful in an interview with the JournalNews about leaving her home and children, two of which are under the age of 18, for prison.
Because she cooperated with the federal investigation and remained a productive citizen working as an accountant for four years waiting learn her fate, Rogers said she believes her sentence is harsh.
“I accepted responsibility. I violated the public trust, I get that,” Rogers said.
“What good is it going to do to send me to prison? Lock me up in my house for two years, I am OK with that.”
Rogers said the past four years have been a prison sentence with the scorn and stress she had endured. As she gets ready to leave her children, including two still in high school, she said she is concerned about their care while she is locked up. She has been divorced from their father for 14 years.
Dynus Corp. was contracted by Butler County early last decade to operate the county’s fiber-optics system, which was built to help spur economic development. Rogers was at the core of the scandal, falsifying documents that secured loans for Dynus while in the name of the county.
Beckwith took into consideration Rogers’ cooperation with federal investigators, family situation, early plea, and acceptance of responsibility, but she said she could not overlook the violation of the public’s trust.
Dynus took out two loans from National City Bank totaling approximately $6.4 million. Rogers signed a resolution on Dec. 31, 2004, at her home — on behalf of the county, but without the commissioners’ knowledge — saying the county would borrow $4 million from National City. Dynus used the loan money to borrow approximately $4 million from Fifth Third Bank.
“I made a very bad decision. I accept responsibility,” Rogers said. But she said, unlike others, she didn’t profit from her part in the Dynus deal.
“I talked with others in the courthouse that day. Then I signed those papers because I thought it would move the project along for the taxpayers of the court,” Rogers said. “I didn’t make any money on it. Why would I knowingly sign those papers and risk losing the job I loved?”
The scheme began to unravel when the county received an invoice from National City for the debt in late August 2005.
Butler County Commissioner Chuck Furmon and National City officials called the FBI to investigate on Sept. 6, 2005.
Rogers eventually pleaded guilty in December 2007 and resigned as county auditor in March 2008. Her sentencing was delayed for four years due to her cooperation with the FBI. Kircher said his client wore a wire to about 100 face-to-face interviews with subjects of investigations.
According to Kircher, Rogers provided information in investigations that include former Dynus executives Orlando Carter and Jim Smith, former Dynus employee Karin Verbruggen, West Chester Twp. Trustee George Lang, former county GOP Finance Director Joe Ruscigno and former politician and Butler County Children’s Services Director Michael Fox.
The last player in the county’s fiber optics scandal is Fox. He was not involved in the Dynus investigation, but Fox pleaded guilty on March 9 to conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud and filing a false tax return for his connection in NORMAP — the company that built the county’s fiber optics system. He signed a plea agreement to be sentenced to four years in prison, but a sentencing date has yet to be set.
Last week a presentence conference was held in federal court where Beckwith set another conference for Sept. 13, when a sentencing day may be set. According to a court entry, Fox’s attorneys will be filing a report with court concerning his health.
Staff Writer Michael Pitman contributed to this story. Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2168 or lpack@coxohio.com.
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