Cleveland City Councilperson Accused Of Fraud, Theft

CLEVELAND — Cleveland City Councilperson Kenneth Johnson was taken into custody by FBI agents on Tuesday morning.

Johnson, 74, was indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit federal program theft, federal program theft, aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, tampering with a witness and falsification of records in a federal investigation, the Department of Justice announced.

Johnson is the Ward 4 councilperson for Cleveland.

“The allegations set forth in today’s indictment detail the exploitation of public office for personal gain,” Acting U.S. Attorney Bridget Brennan said . “Such conduct may bring about a temporary financial benefit for those involved, but it harms the public’s confidence in its elected officials.”

Two other people are named in the indictment: Garnell Jamison, 61, from Cleveland, and John Hopkins, 57, from Cleveland Heights. Jamison worked for the city of Cleveland as Johnson's executive assistant and Hopkins was the executive director of the Buckeye Shaker Development Corporation.

Robert Fitzpatrick , another Cleveland employee, pleaded guilty to his role in the scheme on Feb. 8, prosecutors said.

From Jan. 2010 through October 2018, Johnson, Jamison, Fitzpatrick and others worked together to commit federal program theft, according to the indictment. They convinced the city of Cleveland to issue reimbursement checks from the general fund to Johnson for Ward 4 maintenance — maintenance that was never actually performed, prosecutors said.

Starting in 2010, Fitzpatrick was asked to perform certain maintenance services in Ward 4, including cutting grass, checking on properties, helping with snow removal and looking for homes that could be sold for a profit, the indictment said. He performed those duties for six weeks but was never paid by Johnson or Jamison, the indictment says. He ceased those duties after six weeks and continued to receive his salary from the city, prosecutors said.

Jamison would deliver timesheets to Fitzpatrick, reflecting work done in Ward 4. Jamison told him to sign the timesheets despite Fitzpatrick not doing any of the listed work, the indictment said.

Johnson then included these timesheets in his "Council Member Expense Reports," which are submitted to the city for reimbursement, prosecutors said. The councilperson would then attach receipts to his expense reports, making it appear as if he paid Fitzpatrick in cash, the indictment said.

Between January 2010 and October 2018, Johnson requested the maximum reimbursement — $1,200 monthly — for Fitzpatrick's ward services, the indictment said. Over the years, that totaled $127,200 in expenses, prosecutors noted. Reimbursement checks were deposited into Johnson's personal bank account, the indictment indicated.

In addition to accusations of defrauding Cleveland, Johnson is also accused of stealing federal program funds sent to the Buckeye Shaker Square Development Corporation via community block grants.

From September 2013 through June 2019, Johnson, Hopkins and three others (not named in the indictment) worked together to steal money from the program, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said Johnson and the others created fake documents, including timesheets, to get the development corporation to issue checks to undeserving people. Johnson was either related to or the court-appointed guardian for everyone who received an unwarranted check from the corporation, the indictment said.

The indictment also said Hopkins signed approximately $50,000 in checks issued to third parties, including Johnson's relatives. All the checks were later transferred into Johnson's bank accounts, prosecutors said.

Johnson and Jamison are also accused of falsifying Johnson's tax returns from 2014 through 2018.

In October 2020, Johnson and Jamison tried to coerce a possible witness to lie to prosecutors, the indictment said.

The case was investigated by the Cleveland FBI, IRS-Criminal Investigations and Department of Housing and Urban Development Office. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Justin Seabury Gould and Megan R. Miller.

Patch has reached out to Johnson and will update this story if any statement is provided.