Late Tuesday, Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley issued a statement commenting on of former city commissioner Joey Williams, two other public officials and a Dayton-area business owner. U.S. Department of Justice and FBI officials handed down the indictments alleging public corruption and fraud in Dayton, and city commissioners are following suit with their own comments.
Williams, along with current director of the Dayton Human Relations Council Minority Business Assistance Center Roshawn Winburn, business owner and former state lawmaker Clayton Luckie, and entrepreneur Brian Higgins, were arrested Tuesday on charges ranging from bribery, wire fraud and public corruption.
In her statement, Whaley says she is 鈥渟ad for our city鈥 and reiterated a statement delivered earlier in the day by City Manager Shelley Dickstein, that the city is fully cooperating with federal authorities.
On Wednesday, City Commissioners Matt Joseph and Darryl Fairchild also issued statements supporting the city manager鈥檚 investigation of the city鈥檚 contracting process. Dickstein has hired a law firm to conduct that inquiry.
Joseph says he鈥檚 鈥渟hocked and angry鈥 over the indictments and vowed to find any other 鈥渂ad actors.鈥
Fairchild says he鈥檚 鈥渦nsettled by the allegations鈥 revealed Tuesday. He also called it unprofessional and prejudicial for the Department of Justice 鈥渢o characterize Dayton-area politics... as 'a culture of corruption.'"
On Wednesday evening, Commissioner Chris Shaw released a statement saying, "This City is full of devoted employees who work every day to provide high quality services to the residents of Dayton and we will continue to do so."
Gov. Mike DeWine also weighed in. He told the Dayton Daily News he doesn鈥檛 believe there is a 鈥渃ulture of corruption鈥 in Dayton politics, though DOJ officials say more indictments are expected.
DOJ officials say the Tuesday indictments are just the first wave of charges to come and the investigation has now moved from a covert, or undisclosed, inquiry to an overt one in which public assistance is now requested.
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