“We are in the works, but as Yogi Berra used to say, ‘It ain’t over till it’s over,” Williamson said. “We are efforting toward a resolution.”
The U.S. Attorney’s office could not be reached for comment.
Winburn is one of seven people indicted in the federal corruption probe announced in April last year. Two of those indicted pleaded guilty and were sentenced to prison.
Winburn's trial is scheduled for Feb. 24. He has pleaded not guilty to three counts of honest services wire fraud, two counts of corruptly soliciting a bribe and one count of making a false statement to the FBI. All are felonies. Winburn, 45, is a former Huber Heights councilman and was the city of Dayton's business and technical assistance administrator until he was fired May 3 after his indictment was announced. He is accused of soliciting and accepting more than $20,000 in cash from individuals and companies between 2014 and 2017 while working for the city of Dayton, according to the indictment.
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In return for the money, Winburn is accused of providing disadvantaged business certifications without performing complete verification of qualifications, disclosing confidential information about upcoming city projects and influencing city employees to not fully sanction those who failed to comply with contractual obligations, according to the indictment.
In response to the federal probe the city of Dayton last spring hired the law firm Green and Green to investigate city contracting, but citing attorney-client privilege city officials declined to provide an update on that process, according to a Jan. 27 email from Melissa Leysath, public relations associate in the city's communications office.
Higgins granted continuance
On Thursday, Rose granted a continuance to Brian Higgins, who co-owns Quincy's restaurant in Dayton, moving to July 27 his trial on three counts of mail fraud and one count of wire fraud. Higgins, 48, previously pleaded not guilty to the charges but has not yet submitted a plea on an updated indictment, which includes the same four charges against Higgins but provides more details on the allegations.
“Counsel would characterize this as a complex case involving hours of recordings and countless documents,” Higgins’ attorney Anthony R. Cicero wrote in the motion seeking the continuance. “The defense needs additional time to analyze the discovery, issue the appropriate subpoenas, and investigate the charges completely.”
Higgins is not a public official and, unlike the other defendants, his case does not involve public contracting allegations. Authorities said they became aware of Higgins’ alleged criminal activities in the course of the public corruption investigation.
He is accused of defrauding insurance company Assurant out of more than $100,000 by falsely claiming that the money was being used to repair damage from a leaking fish tank on a home he co-owned on Meeker Creek Drive in Dayton, according to the superseding indictment filed Dec. 12. He allegedly used the insurance money at a casino, and to pay for a planned restaurant and his phone bill.
Higgins owned the now-defunct Sidebar 410 restaurant in the Oregon District.
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Two sentenced to prison
Federal authorities have obtained two convictions in the public corruption case.
Last year former Dayton City Commissioner Joey D. Williams pleaded guilty and in January was sentenced to a year in federal prison for corruptly soliciting a bribe, a felony.
Rose also sentenced Williams, 54, to two years of supervised release, the first six months of which will be in home confinement, after his prison sentence ends. Williams must pay $28,000 in restitution for free home improvements he accepted in exchange for using his influence as a city commissioner in 2015 to help an unnamed demolition contractor get $150,000 in contracts from the city of Dayton and CityWide Development Corp.
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Former State Rep. Clayton Luckie, 56, pleaded guilty to a single felony count of mail fraud and was sentenced to four months in prison followed by four months of home confinement, three years supervised release and 100 hours of community service. Luckie is incarcerated at Ashland Federal Correctional Institution, according to prison records.
Luckie admitted to fraudulently using the city of Dayton’s disadvantaged business program to help a non-disadvantaged demolition contractor complete city contracts between June 2016 and January 2017. Luckie received $2,000 in the scheme.
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Also indicted in the corruption probe were Steve Rauch, 64, owner of Steve Rauch Inc., former Trotwood Mayor Joyce Sutton Cameron, 71, owner of Green Star Trucking Inc. and her husband, James Cameron, 81, of Trotwood, who is an employee of Green Star and has not yet made an initial court appearance.
The three were each indicted on one of count conspiracy to commit mail fraud and six counts mail fraud, all felonies.
Rauch and Joyce Sutton Cameron pleaded not guilty and are scheduled to be tried March 2.
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The indictment alleges that Rauch used Green Star’s minority-owned status to win demolition contracts from the city of Dayton and other government entities between 2012 and 2014, years that Sutton Cameron was Trotwood mayor. Rauch and the Camerons are accused of producing false documentation to make it appear Green Star had done work that Rauch had done, and Rauch is accused of paying them a fee or forgiving debt rather than paying them the amount called for in the contract, according to the indictment.
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