Public officials hold a high level of power and must exercise responsibility while remaining impartial against influence.
Mr. Samuel Randazzo was the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio chairman from April 2019 to November 2020, when he resigned. It is alleged Mr. Randazzo received bribe money from energy companies for favorable official actions. The money was paid through the consulting business, Sustainability Funding Alliance of Ohio, Inc., where Mr. Randazzo was listed as the president and the business was located at Mr. Randazzo’s home address.
Also using Sustainability Funding Alliance of Ohio, Mr. Randazzo allegedly diverted at least a million dollars meant for an association of large, industrial energy users in Ohio. In addition, Mr. Randazzo was the general counsel, and at times the executive director of the industry group from 2010 until his placement as chairman. In these roles Mr. Randazzo controlled the industry group’s bank accounts.
With this control Mr. Randazzo allegedly entered into settlements with companies on behalf of the industry group and kept portions of the settlement payments. To further conceal the scheme, Mr. Randazzo allegedly created a fictitious member of the industry group that received payments and wired approximately $1.1 million between bank accounts.
Unfortunately, this fraud was not discovered until after Mr. Randazzo resigned. This case accentuates the dangers of one individual having exclusive control over company funds, and the importance of creating safeguards with proper internal controls.
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya
