The top FBI agent in the money laundering investigation that resulted in P.G. Sittenfeld’s prosecution stated that political strategist Jared Kamrass testified during interrogation that he kept $15,000 that the FBI handed him for Governor John Cranley’s campaign.
No one knew when it happened, what became of the money, or why FBI agents gave it to Jared Kamrass for a project in Cranley.
He served as the PAC’s secretary, handling not only Sittenfeld’s donations but also those made by other donors to support Cranley’s earlier campaigns.
Jared Kamrass will testify in the defense’s favor
However, Jared Kamrass may be prosecuted for something unrelated to Sittenfeld’s problem: “violating federal regulations about usual, legal methods of financing campaigns and fundraising,” according to court documents.
Several of the court filings, in this case, refer to a certain “Public Official A.”
The following is an excerpt from additional court documents identifying this guy as the governor of Cincinnati during the investigation:
The prosecution has filed an appeal motion arguing that Public Official A’s rejection of a council decision is permissible under Cincinnati’s city charter, but that the council members can overturn the decision with six of nine votes.
Recent defensive statements made by Jared Kamrass indicate that one of Sittenfeld’s financing consultants lied to him “about following up with (an actual FBI agent) to confirm proper LLC principal attribution facts.” Mr. Sittenfeld immediately fired the individual upon discovering the lie, which was confirmed by the individual to the FBI. Mr. Sittenfeld had no idea that the same employee of Public Official A had become a federal cooperator for crimes that had nothing to do with him.
Court documents show that in 2017, FBI agents began investigating allegations of corruption inside the Cincinnati city government.
Transferring Special Agent Nathan Holbrook
Special Agent Nathan Holbrook was transferred to the FBI’s Cincinnati field office at the beginning of 2018 and given several active investigations. One of them was the former Cincinnati Bengals athlete and current software engineer Chinedum Ndukwe.
Ndukwe was found guilty of “IRA premature withdrawal contraventions in 2013,” “campaign financing violations in 2013,” and “various additional possible government offenses” after an investigation. Court records show that Ndukwe began working with the FBI in March of 2018 and was paid $27,000 in 2018 and 2019 to spy on government employees.
According to Holbrook’s testimony, Ndukwe admitted avoiding his reporting requirements for campaign contributions by withdrawing $40,000 from his IRA and sending it to a friend in 2013. The friend then deposited $35,000 into bank accounts and kept $5,000 for himself.
According to Holbrook, Jared Kamrass gave former Cincinnati City Council members Cranley, Chris Smitherman, and Charlie Winburn over two dozen money orders in fictitious names and nine cashier’s checks.
The court heard that in 2013, the three persons and Ndukwe met to discuss ways to circumvent regulations limiting political finance, as detailed in Ndukwe’s “proffer” contract with the government.
Who Jared Kamrass is?
Jared Kamrass presents himself as an experienced political strategist and communications expert.
In his current role at Technicolor Political in Washington, DC, Jared Kamrass serves as a senior strategist for Democratic candidates and issues. As such, he advises clients on matters of paid communication strategy, spending, and demographics. For them, he creates and distributes radio, television, and digital advertisements, as well as original content.
In his previous role as Principal and Chief Strategist at Rivertown Strategies in Cincinnati, Ohio, Jared helped clients formulate marketing and communication strategies, created campaign plans, and managed both in-house and outsourced staff and contractors.
Jared Kamrass also organized and carried out extensive fundraising activities for federal, state, and close initiatives, drafted general strategic recommendations to candidates and initiative personnel, built coalitions, and fostered relationships between business leaders, community groups, elected officials, and the press.
Here’s a rundown of who’s seen it so far and who might check it out shortly
- Kevin Flynn, a fellow ex-member of the Cincinnati City Council who served from 2013 to 2017, testified first for the prosecution.
- Flynn was only able to give a high-level summary of municipal government, council, and real estate transactions in his testimony earlier this week.
- The former director of economic development in Cincinnati was the next speaker.
- Phil Denning has been elevated to the position of executive vice president of the Port Authority.
- There are around forty more possible witnesses, including government and opposing party representatives, who could testify at this trial.
- There is currently no way to predict how many witnesses will testify. That will depend on the verdict in the case.
- Sittenfeld’s attorneys were asked by prosecutors to limit their strategy, but court documents show that “if the defendant presents evidence related to these inquiries, this again ‘opens the door’ for the government to introduce clarifying evidence supporting those investigations if needed.”
If Sittenfeld were to take the stand in his defense, for instance, prosecutors could choose to present additional witnesses and/or evidence to refute his claims.
These are the witnesses that the prosecution plans to use:
- Brunner
- Chinedum
- Ndukwe
- Political consultant and Democrat strategist Jared Kamrass has worked with several different campaigns. Lawyers for Sittenfeld contested his testimony, but the judge ruled last week that he can continue since his testimony is relevant to “the goal and conduct at issue in this case.”
- Jay Kincaid is a democratic analyst and the former chief of operations for Governor John Cranley (the person who was in administration from the end of 2013 to the beginning of 2022). The FBI agent testified that after leaving his position as Cranley’s chief of staff, Kincaid worked as a lobbyist for Ndukwe. Holbrook added that Ndukwe told him that Sittenfeld had told him to “discreetly” discuss gift arrangements with Kincaid.
- Claire McKenna is a certified public accountant.
- Co-Chief Executive Officer of FC Cincinnati Berding, Jeff
- David Spaulding, v.p. and g.m. of Turner Construction
In Conclusiveness
Jared Kamrass, through his political consulting firm, serves as an adviser to several Democratic candidates. He tried to defend himself in court but to no avail.
You may also read- https://www.repdigger.com/chase-harmer/
