Five indicted in campaign probe
By Johnny Brannon
Advertiser Staff Writer
An O'ahu grand jury yesterday indicted five people associated with one of Hawai'i's largest government contractors for allegedly making illegal campaign donations to Mayor Jeremy Harris.
Meanwhile, Honolulu Police Commission chairman Ronald Taketa said a majority of the seven-member panel wants commissioner Leonard Leong to resign after pleading no contest to a similar violation Tuesday.
City councilman Charles Djou has called publicly for Leong to resign, and other council members have expressed concern about Leong remaining on the commission, which adjudicates allegations of police misconduct.
City Council chairman Donovan Dela Cruz yesterday said no one should serve on a city commission after admitting to, or being found guilty of, a crime, but he did not believe the council had legal authority to force Leong out.
The grand jury heard testimony from 12 witnesses and returned misdemeanor indictments against R.M. Towill Corp. executives Nancy K. Matsuno, Kenneth T. Sakai and Roy Tsutsui.
The secret panel also indicted retired Towill controller Robert Y. Ko and company associate Donn S. Mende.
None of the defendants could be reached yesterday, and the company and its attorney declined to comment.
The charges were the latest in a long series to emerge from a wide-ranging investigation that has stretched nearly two years.
It was the second time Towill — an engineering firm involved in major city and state projects for decades — has faced court scrutiny.
Former company president Richard Towill was indicted by federal and state grand juries in 1975 and 1977 in relation to alleged illegal campaign contributions to former Mayor Frank Fasi. Towill was acquitted in the federal case, and state charges against him and Fasi were later dropped.
Each of the latest charges carries a maximum penalty of one year in jail and a $2,000 fine. Ko and Tsu-tsui each were indicted on three counts, Sakai and Mende on two, and Matsuno on one.
Eight other defendants, including Leong, have been fined after pleading no contest to criminal charges stemming from donations to Harris. One more is awaiting trial, and another is awaiting sentencing.
No one has gone to jail or been placed on probation. Deputy city prosecutor Randal Lee said he was disappointed by the penalties, but the continuing investigation likely would result in additional, possibly more serious charges.
"As a lawyer, I respect the decisions of the court," Lee said. "The court's decisions will not deter how we carry out our obligation to the community. Namely, if crimes are committed, they will be investigated and prosecuted."
Ko, Matsuno, Sakai and Tsutsui were arrested earlier this year on suspicion of money laundering — a felony — but were released uncharged. Lee said he did not pursue felony indictments yesterday, but still might.
In September, Matsuno, Sakai and Tsutsui filed a lawsuit alleging that the arrests were meant to "retaliate and harass them for refusing to answer questions" before a grand jury in 2002 after they invoked their Fifth Amendment right to remain silent.
"I think taking the Fifth is probably the wrong strategy, in light of some of the other people getting off with slaps on the wrist," said Campaign Spending Commission director Robert Watada.
The commission has conducted its own investigation, leading to dozens of companies being fined much more than the court penalties.
Lee declined to specify how much money allegedly had been donated illegally to Harris by people associated with Towill. But Watada said his investigation had turned up approximately $100,000 in questionable campaign funds linked to the company, the bulk of which went to Harris.
Harris' attorney repeatedly has said the mayor never solicited or knowingly accepted illegal donations, and has called the criminal probe a "witch hunt" that singles our Harris unfairly to sabotage his political career.
Watada said he was disappointed by the court sentences but remained hopeful that prosecutors would make more progress.
"I think the prosecutor's just moving up the tree," he said. "Somebody ought to go to jail for what's been happening. Maybe the public doesn't think it's such a horrible thing, but in my mind this corruption is bad stuff."
Leong, the police commissioner, was sentenced Tuesday to a $1,000 fine and given a chance to clear his record if he is charged with no additional offenses for one year. On Monday, he and Royal Contracting Co., where he works as vice president, agreed with the campaign spending commission to a $20,000 penalty.
Harris, who appointed Leong in 1996, stood by him while the charge was pending. Harris spokeswoman Carol Costa declined Tuesday to contact Harris, who is in Greece attending an environmental conference, and did not return calls yesterday.
The City Council yesterday unanimously approved Harris' nomination of his former budget chief to the Police Commission. Caroll Takahashi served in the administration for eight years and resigned in 2001 to help care for an ailing relative.
Reach Johnny Brannon at jbrannon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.
