COLUMBUS – A lobbyist at the center of the City Hall red light camera scandal pleaded guilty Thursday to extortion.
READ MORE: In The Columbus Dispatch
Authorities say John Raphael extorted money in the form of campaign contributions for elected officials from Phoenix-based Redflex, a traffic-camera company trying to keep its contracts with the city.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office says Raphael, 60, pleaded guilty to one count of interference with commerce by threats, a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison plus fines.
Federal authorities say, between 2005 and 2013, Raphael pressured Redflex executives to make contributions to the campaigns of various elected officials, warning them that the company would lose its contracts if it didn’t.
Former Redflex CEO Karen Finley pleaded guilty in June to conspiracy to commit federal programs bribery and honest services wire and mail fraud.
Raphael has said he is taking responsibility for his “improper” actions, but denies he took part in any bribery or public corruption. He does not implicate any elected officials in his plea deal.
A federal investigation is ongoing.
Meanwhile, The Columbus Dispatch reported Friday morning that newly unsealed court documents show that a former sales executive for Redflex pleaded guilty in 2014 to conspiring to bribe elected officials in Columbus to obtain and retain contracts here.
Aaron M. Rosenberg, the former executive vice president of sales at Redflex, pleaded guilty to making — and hiding — campaign donations to influence city officials from 2005, when the city’s original red-light contract started, through 2013. He served a year on probation as part of a federal diversion program in which he promised to help federal prosecutors.
Rosenberg is the Redflex official who City Council President Andrew J. Ginther called to ask for a $20,000 campaign donation in 2011. Ginther has acknowledged making that call and that he asked Raphael to help him secure a donation from Redflex. Court documents say that Redflex gave Raphael $20,000 to pass along, according to the newspaper report. Raphael gave $20,000 to the Ohio Democratic Party, which then made a $21,000 donation to Ginther’s campaign in 2011.
Ginther, who is a candidate for Columbus mayor, has said that he did not know whether the party donation originally came from Redflex. Ginther has not been charged with a crime.