Vallejo City Employee Arrested On Bribery Allegations

SOLANO COUNTY, CA -- A city of Vallejo landscape maintenance manager was arrested last week on suspicion of soliciting bribes from a contractor working for the city.

The FBI began investigating the bribery allegations against Donald Burton on March 29 after Vallejo police informed them Burton allegedly offered a business owner additional work in exchange for a 10-percent
kickback.

The affidavit in support of a criminal complaint by FBI Special Agent Sean Lister states Burton, a Vallejo Public Works Engineering Division employee, had the authority to contract with local landscape companies.

Burton allegedly told a business owner, identified only as a confidential source, he had $75,000 to spend on miscellaneous jobs he wanted to contract with the source for a 10-percent kickback.

Burton allegedly told the source more days of work had to be added to the contract even though the job could be completed sooner. Burton allegedly told the source to bring a laptop with blank invoices to create contracts when they met on April 27 and he would sign the contracts and mail them to the source, according to Lister's affidavit.

The source met Burton on May 15 in a vehicle that contained a video/audio recording device that could be monitored live, and Burton could be seen creating the contracts on the laptop, according to the affidavit.

On numerous occasions, Burton allegedly added two days of unnecessary work to contracts in order to be paid $2,000. Burton also is heard on the recording breaking up work into smaller jobs because he only had
signing authority for contracted jobs of up to $25,000.

Burton and the source met again in May when Burton allegedly said another job that probably would take 10 days of work would be billed for 15 days and he and the source could split the money for the extra five days.

In April 2016, the Vallejo City Council approved federally funded Community Development Block Grants in excess of $900,000, of which $263,100 was to go toward Public Works projects.

One block grant contract for $11,400 called for eight days of work and a three-man crew. Another contract was for $10,360 that called for seven days of work by a three-man crew.

The 15 days of work was consistent with a recorded conversation on May 15 where Burton allegedly told the source to increase the days required to do a job from 10 to 15 days so they could split the funds, including
$2,000 for Burton. The source was scheduled to meet with Burton last Wednesday to pay him the $2,000 kickback.

Burton was arrested last Wednesday. He is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Sacramento on June 23 for a probable cause hearing.

Vallejo City Manager Daniel Keen said in a statement that Burton was placed on administrative leave pending the completion of the investigation.

"We take allegations of criminal activities by city employees very seriously. We are cooperating with authorities as their investigation of this matter continues," Keen said.

Keen's office said the city will engage an independent auditor to examine all agreements Burton handled over the past several years, and if wrongdoing is found, the city will reimburse the landscape district impacted.

Burton managed agreements for landscaping and capital improvements to the neighborhood districts, which make improvements to parks, playgrounds, sidewalks and trees.

By Bay City News Service

Image via Shutterstock