Scott Walker aid embezzeled thousands from operation freedom fund for vacations usurping $ from vets

[midnight]

Former aide to Wisconsin governor charged with fraud





By Brendan O'Brien and John Rondy
MILWAUKEE | Thu Jan 5, 2012 5:37pm EST
(Reuters) - A former aide to Wisconsin's Republican Governor Scott Walker was charged with fraud on Thursday, accused of embezzling thousands of dollars from a fund for families of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The complaint accused Tim Russell, who worked closely with Walker when he was Milwaukee County Executive, of diverting more than $21,000 intended for Operation Freedom to his personal bank account and using some of the money to go on Hawaiian and Caribbean vacations.

Another man also faces fraud and embezzlement charges linked to the case, while Russell's domestic partner, Brian Pierick, faces charges of child enticement that prosecutors said came to light in the investigation.

According to the criminal complaint, other funds were used by Russell to attend a weekend political strategy session in December 2010 with Herman Cain and his chief of staff, Mark Block, to discuss Cain's now-defunct presidential campaign.


http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/05/us-crime-wisconsin-walker-aide-idUSTRE8041T920120105

[golddigger]

1. Teabagger repukes are nothing but corrupt political scum.

[PDJane]

2. Besides, they don't have money........

So why should you give them any? It's not the GOP way.

[Turbineguy]

3. Hey

it was either steal from the Veterans or the Blind!

[freshwest]

4. Why not both? And the kids and the elderly and the...

[midnight]

5. "He owes the people of Wisconsin an explanation for his role in these alleged bad acts," Democratic

Party Chairman Mike Tate said in a statement." http://www.realclearpolitics.com/news/ap/politics_topics/2012/Jan/05/3_arrested_as_part_of_probe_into_ex_walker_aides.html


Hopefully Mike Tate can fit this into a commercial to remove this Koch head from the Gov. Mansion...

[PeaceNikki]

6. Tim Russell was't just an aide. He was the DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF on Scott Walker's campaign.

Russell is, or at least was until recently, treasurer of the Republican Party of Milwaukee County.

He also was a board member and treasurer of the Soldiers Home Foundation from 2008 to 2010. His name has been scrubbed from the foundation website, but here's the archive listing him as treasurer as late as July 2011.

http://web.archive.org/web/20110718210151/http://www.soldiershome.org/contact-us http://www.soldiershome.org/

There's a whole lotta scrubbin' goin' on. The GOP has purged its site, too

[midnight]

7. I searched three different leads that discuss his current chief of staff

Nardelli's immunity, and those stories are missing...


"Walker said Thursday that he was “very disappointed” by the alleged actions. He added that his chief of staff Nardelli, with his support, had asked the Milwaukee County district attorney to investigate concerns about the missing money."http://www.recallscottwalker.com/2012/01/walker-staff-probe-leads-to-3-arrests/

[PeaceNikki]

8. I am actually encouraged by the secrecy in these investigations.

I fully expect them to be handled with the utmost care and discretion as to not taint the results of full investigation and prosecution. I think there is going to be a lot more to come out of this. And I think it will be pretty big.

And the timing couldn't be more interesting.

[midnight]

9. Not sure what to think about the timing??? Are you thinking because it's close to recall?

[midnight]

10. Confirmation on lots of scrubbing going on....

Tim Russell (pictured), the longtime Scott Walker crony charged with embezzling money intended to help veterans, has had his fingers in other money pots, too. The list keeps growing.
Russell is, or at least was until recently, treasurer of the Republican Party of Milwaukee County, as we reported earlier.
He also was a board member and treasurer of the Soldiers Home Foundation from 2008 to 2010. His name has been scrubbed from the foundation website, but here's the archive listing him as treasurer as late as July 2011.
http://web.archive.org/web/20110718210151/http://www.soldiershome.org/contact-us http://www.soldiershome.org/
There's a whole lotta scrubbin' goin' on. The GOP has purged its site, too.

http://uppitywis.org/blogarticle/tim-russell-everybodys-treasurer