The Connecticut Post is reporting the investigation that led to the arrest of former State Marshal Charlie Valentino involving car-tax delinquents has legs that could produce more arrests.
The Post reported on Sunday the FBI and Statewide Organized Crime Investigative Task Force continues to look into the city’s arrangement with Valentino and local tow companies “in the booting, towing and disposal of cars belonging to residents who owed taxes.”
From the Post:
“The arrest of Valentino on Monday opened the door on a number of questions, including whether the Bridgeport Tax Collector’s oversight of the tow program is adequate. It also cast a spotlight on the towing companies, and it raised the possibility the city has been failing to capture tax dollars.
Full story here.
This was a fraud of major proportions and we really don’t know how much money was stolen and by whom.
Those billboards all over Bridgeport encouraging people to call and report corruption in city government, they do work. Can’t wait for the next wave of arrests. My sources tell me the FBI had to put on about 10 more agents due to so much good information received. If anyone thinks Valentino is corrupt, wait until the FBI gets into 300 Congress St.
The more I read about Anne Kelly-Lenz the more incompetent she appears.
If you recall, when the entire issue of Richard DeJesus’ property tax delinquency became public she stated her office was in the process of retaining a firm to pursue property tax delinquencies. At that point, Mayor Finch was well into his eighth year in office. That meant for almost eight years neither Mayor Finch nor his appointee Anne Kelly-Lenz had pursued every single business in Bridgeport that had outstanding personal property taxes.
Once the scandal regarding Charlie Valentino occurred where he perjured himself on the stand regarding the Vallas lawsuit, shouldn’t a light bulb have gone off where any city business/agreement involving Charles Valentino should have been reviewed?
Now she openly admits her office does not receive a list of every towed vehicle and what the final disposition was. Shouldn’t each tow company be required to submit a list each month, which should be cross referenced with the BPD, how many days the vehicle was in storage and what the corresponding fees were, if the vehicle was auctioned, what date the auction was held, the amount the vehicle was auctioned off for, etc. There should be a 30 day, 60 day, 90 day, column.
We send unit owners to collections frequently. Our collections attorney provides us with a status of each unit, how much was collected, status of the collection, attorney’s fees, etc. In fact, because that list is submitted monthly, I have caught omissions and errors because we keep a master list in our office of when the unit was referred for collections. If the unit is not on their list and we have not received payment; we contact the collections attorney immediately.
This certainly reflects poorly on Mayor Finch and Anne Kelly-Lenz.
My contact in city hall (Deep Throat) told me to break out the Lozenge, this one could be the Big Mahuffa!
A delinquent car is spotted and booted and they get $95. Then after a day or two the car gets towed and the tow truck company gets, whatever, $125 dollars, then the tow truck company stores the car and gets $50 (?) a day. And then Charlie V is paid to conduct an auction. And if the numbers are right and there is still value in the car he buys it and sells it to make more money. Of course it is impossible for the city to make money in this monte game.
And Anne Kelly-Lenz and Veronica Jones find it perfectly logical.
If Bill Finch does not fire the both of them Monday morning then he has taken complete ownership of this fiasco.