Posted on: Thursday, January 20, 2005

Ex-CEO of engineering firm fined $2,500 in donation case

Advertiser Staff

A former chief executive officer of an engineering firm was fined $2,500 for what city prosecutors said were $160,000 in illegal donations to former Mayor Jeremy Harris' campaign.

But Larry K. Matsuo, 78, former CEO of Park Engineering, will have the criminal case against him dropped if he abides by conditions similar to probation.

Matsuo pleaded no contest in November to a misdemeanor of making the donations under false names and felony money laundering.

But Matsuo has cooperated with authorities, and Circuit Judge Richard Perkins granted a defense request yesterday to have the case dismissed if Matsuo stays out of trouble for five years.

City deputy prosecutor Randal Lee said the donations were made from 1996 to 2001 to Harris' campaign under 20 to 30 names of employees and relatives.

Matsuo is one of dozens of architects, engineers and others prosecuted in the past three years on charges of making illegal campaign donations.

Harris, who left office earlier this month, has not been charged and his lawyers have repeatedly denied that he did anything wrong.

Like many others prosecuted for illegal campaign donations, Matsuo pleaded no contest.

Defendants are found guilty when they enter such pleas, unless they are first-time offenders, like Matsuo, and ask that their pleas be deferred. If the request is granted — and the defendants abide by probation-type conditions — the charges are dropped after a period of time.