“I am going to ask them to dismiss the case because there is no law violated,” he said. “What I was trying to do was in the best interest for the township.”
Matthews is accused of moving $9.7 million in township funds last March from the State Treasury Asset Reserve of Ohio without approval from the Miami Twp. Board of Trustees or the township’s investment oversight committee.
He had intended to invest in gold coins through agreements that prosecutors allege would have incurred more than $382,000 in fees plus $32,000 a year in storage costs for the township.
The Ohio Attorney General’s Office filed a civil lawsuit in September accusing Matthews of violating state law and township policy. By law, fiscal officers mainly handle clerical and record‑keeping duties and cannot move township funds without authorization from at least two trustees.
Hein in October issued an order temporarily barring Matthews from performing any fiscal duties or entering township offices, unless he is attending a public meeting, while the case proceeds. Former fiscal officer Greg Clingerman is serving as deputy fiscal officer.
Matthews was elected fiscal officer in November 2023 and took office in April 2024. In November, he unsuccessfully ran for township trustee. He previously served as a trustee from 2013 to March 2017, when he resigned to avoid a potential conflict of interest after accepting a job at a firm that contracted with the township. Matthews said he no longer works there.
