Cleveland Strip Clubs: Another ODOT vendor arraigned in bid-rigging, kickback investigation
James Bright, 71, of North Royalton, pleaded not guilty in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court to bribery and theft charges. He is scheduled to appear at a pretrial hearing Aug. 24 in Common Pleas Judge Kathleen Ann Sutula’s courtroom.
Also scheduled to appear that day are vendors Craig Gorsuch, 58, of Wellington; Mark O’Donnell, 60, of Elyria; Richard Goldizen, 54, of Perry; former ODOT purchasing coordinator Thomas Short Jr., 63, of Lancaster; former ODOT storekeeper Joseph Jedrzejek, 37; and former ODOT auto mechanic William Werman, 57, both of Garfield Heights.
Assistant County Prosecutor Paul Soucie said several dozen additional indictments should be filed soon.
The defendants have cooperated so far, he said. And he expects all to take responsibility for their part in a decade-long scheme in which vendors furnished high-ranking officials in ODOT’s District 12 office in Garfield Heights with cash, vacations and sex with strippers on Lake Erie fishing trips in return for state contracts.
See the full article from “The Plain Dealer – cleveland.com”