(DAYTON, Ohio) — A Montgomery County judge has granted Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s request to temporarily ban Miami Township’s fiscal officer from his elected duties while the state seeks his permanent removal.
“The fiscal officer’s sin was trying to invest $9.7 million that didn’t belong to him in a product that the township’s investment policy doesn’t allow for,” Yost said. “He doesn’t get to arbitrarily decide that the rules don’t apply.”
Visiting Judge Jonathan P. Hein ruled that Robert Matthews meets the state’s legal criteria for temporary removal from office. Hein concluded that Matthews “in a purposeful and knowing manner, committed an act expressly prohibited by law with regard to a fiscal duty.”
The order prohibits Matthews from performing any responsibilities of the township fiscal officer, including conducting financial transactions or financial reporting. He is also barred from entering township offices except for public meetings.
The ruling directs Miami Township to treat the fiscal officer position as if it were vacant, but officials are not yet permitted to seek Matthews’ replacement.
Yost’s legal action follows substantiated reports that Matthews made an unauthorized $9.7 million withdrawal of township funds to buy gold coins. Had Matthews succeeded, the township would have been charged $382,037 in transaction fees and $32,613 in annual storage fees.
Ohio law limits township fiscal officers to clerical duties, such as keeping a record of accounts, transactions and board meetings. The law also prohibits spending of township funds without the signatures of at least two trustees, countersigned by the fiscal officer.
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Dominic Binkley: 614-728-4127
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