A
SSOCIATED
N
EWSPAPERS OF
M
ICHIGAN
P
AGE
2
December 17, 2015
P
LYMOUTH
Expense of holiday lights questioned by trustees
Plymouth man accused in retirement fraud scheme
Two township trustees who peppered
Plymouth Township Treasurer Ron
Edwards with questions during a budget
workshop last week said theywere aghast
to discover the cost of new holiday lights
installed at FireStationNo. 3.
Edwards referred the questions from
Trustees Bob Doroshewitz and Chuck
Curmi to Township Fire Chief Dan
Phillips. The chief said the cost to deco-
rate the fire station located at the corner
of Beck andTerritorial roadswas $16,000.
An audible gasp was heard from resi-
dents in the audience, prompting a laugh
fromEdwards.
Phillips said that former Township
Supervisor Richard Reaume purchased
the new LED lights last January which
included a 20-foot long commercial scroll
that reads “HappyHolidays.”
Trustee Bob Doroshewitz asked how
Reaume was able to “pull-off” the pur-
chase when officials who hold credit
cards are supposed to be limited to
$15,000 per transaction.
Neither Edwards nor Supervisor
Shannon Price responded to his question
although the audience' reaction was
again audible throughout the meeting
room.
Phillips said that when he recently
inquired about the lights, he was told by
officials, “Youmight aswell use 'em.”
Invoices included with the March and
June board information packets detailed
separate payments made to Bronner's, a
Christmas store in Frankenmuth. The
cost for the LED lighted scroll alone was
$5,429.
Phillips said the shipments were
placed in the DPW building when they
were received.
After the meeting, Phillips said it took
him and his working staff two and a half
days to put up the display and there were
extra lights which were not used. He said
that all employees installing the display
were being paid during the time of the
work.
Former Wayne County Airport
Chief Operating Officer and ex-
Wayne County Sheriff Deputy
Daniel Ogden Kerber pleaded
not guilty to charges of fraud at
his arraignment last week before
35th District Court Judge Ronald
Lowe inPlymouth.
Kerber, 66, a Plymouth
Township resident who was the
airport Chief Operating Officer
under county executive Robert
Ficano, faces a maximum penal-
ty of 20 years after being charged
with one count of larceny by false
pretenses over $100,000 and one
count of larceny by conversion of
over $20,000, which carries a
maximum penalty of 10 years in
prison.
Kerber retired from the coun-
ty airport in September of 2009
and began receiving a monthly
pension of $11,337.48.
“When Kerber retired, he had
a separation agreement that
specified that his defined contri-
bution assets of $340,166, held by
Prudential, would be transferred
into the Wayne County retire-
ment system,” saidWayneCounty
Prosecutor KymWorthy in a pre-
pared statement.
“It is alleged that on April 27,
2011, in violation of his separa-
tion agreement, Kerber contact-
ed Prudential for a check for his
Plan 5 funds. The request was
approved by an employee of the
Wayne County Retirement
System. On May 5, 2011, a check,
with income tax taken out, for
$277,481.40 was deposited in
Kerber's credit union account.”
Wayne County Employee's
Retirement System didn't discov-
er the scheme until last April,
four years after the fact.
Molly Kettler, assistant Wayne
County prosecuting attorney,
asked the court for a reasonable
cash bond stating that Kerber
had a home outside of Michigan
and could be considered a flight
risk. Kettler also requested that
Kerber surrender his passport.
Kerber has homes in Plymouth
Township, Glennie and Sarasota,
FLA.
Kerber's attorney, Jamil
Akhtar, argued that Kerber was
not a flight risk as he was a 30-
year township resident and has,
“a house onemile away from this
courtroom.”
Akhtar asked to be excused
from the case saying he's a labor
and employment attorney and
asked for more time. Lowe
agreed to a personal recogni-
zance bond and set the dates for
a probable cause hearing to Dec.
18 and a preliminary exam on
Dec. 28.
Lowe cautioned Akhtar about
the court appearances, “Those
two dates are rock solid. Better
make sure an attorney is avail-
able on those dates.”
Lowe allowed Kerber to
return to his home in Florida,
where he has lived for five years,
under the condition he turn in
his passport to the court.
“I'mnot a trial lawyer.” Akhtar
said after the hearing. “I believe
there are political motivations
behind the charges. They're (the
pension system) 100 percent
funded.
“This has no effect on the mis-
management of the Wayne
County pensionplan,” he said.
Akhtar, who referred to him-
self as a 40-year personal friend
of Kerber, acknowledged that
they both at one time worked for
the Wayne County Sheriff
Department. “Kerber worked for
me…he was a sergeant and
worked there until he was laid
off.”
A record search shows
Kerber was at one time Deputy
Director of Wayne County
Airport Police. Akhtar's website
states that before starting his law
practice he worked for the
Wayne
County
Sheriff's
Department for 20 years.
“This case is the ultimate
example of why the Wayne
County Retirement System is not
properly funded. The alleged
facts in this case will show that
the defendant's greed allowed
him to net hundreds of thou-
sands of dollars he was not enti-
tled to, all while he received over
$11,000 a month in a pension
from the county,” said Prosecutor
KymWorthy inher statement.
Don Howard
Staff Writer
Don Howard
Staff Writer
