Fraudster ‘Bobby Thompson’ sentenced to 28 years
John Donald Cody, known for years under the stolen identity of Bobby Thompson, was sentenced in December to 28 years in prison on 23 counts, including engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity and complicity to money laundering and theft. The judge also fined Cody more than $6 million and ordered him to spend every Veterans Day in solitary confinement.
The Ohio Attorney General’s Charitable Law Section and Bureau of Criminal Investigation spent several years investigating Cody. He was accused of bilking nearly $2 million from Ohioans who thought they were donating to military veterans. Nationwide, Cody’s fraudulent U.S. Navy Veterans Association is believed to have scammed residents of 41 states out of tens of millions of dollars.
The Attorney General’s Office began investigating Cody in 2010 following a series of newspaper stories on the USNVA. After nearly two years on the lam, he was arrested outside his Portland, Ore., boarding house. In a nearby storage unit that Cody leased under an assumed identity, BCI agents recovered a suitcase containing more than $980,000 in cash.
Assistant Attorney General Brad Tammaro of the Attorney General’s Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission handled the prosecution of Cody in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court.
Four cities sign on for AG’s Safe Neighborhoods Initiative
Lima, Steubenville, and Warren recently joined Akron as participants in the “Ohio Attorney General’s Office Safe Neighborhoods Initiative.” The initiative assists communities experiencing a high level of gun violence by focusing on the most violent offenders, typically a small group of individuals responsible for most crime. For more information on the program, contact Assistant Attorney General Bob Fiatal at
Robert.Fiatal@OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov or
216-787-3030.
AG renews call for sexual assault kits
Attorney General Mike DeWine urges Ohio law enforcement agencies to submit untested sexual assault kits to his office. Here are BCI test results under the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative as of mid-January.
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Kits submitted: 5,287
Kits tested: 2,591
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CODIS hits identifying a DNA source or investigative lead: 857 (33 percent of kits tested)
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Agencies submitting kits: 113
For more information or to submit untested kits, call
855-BCI-OHIO (855-224-6446).
OPOTC stresses need for agencies to report changes in officers’ status
The Ohio Peace Office Training Commission reminds law enforcement agencies of their duty to report changes in officer status under Ohio Revised Code 109.761. OPOTC is the official keeper of Ohio peace officer appointment and employment records.
To ensure agency and officer records are accurate, agencies are required to report changes in officer status within 10 days. Agencies must report the appointment, employment, termination, resignation, felony conviction, death, or guilty plea as specified in ORC 109.77(F) of all officers within their departments. Form SF400adm is used for appointments and status changes, and form SF401adm for departures. The forms are available at
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/sf400adm and
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/sf401adm.
“If agencies do not accurately and quickly report an officer’s appointment or changes in an officer’s employment, the state’s official record of that officer is not accurate,” Acting OPOTC Executive Director Mary Davis said. “Not only does this negatively affect the individual’s professional certification and employment history, but it can jeopardize cases, lead to breaks in service, and in the case of administrators, result in departments not receiving official correspondence.”
Agencies are also required to submit rosters of all staff serving in full-time, part-time, reserve, auxiliary, or other capacities. OPOTC has forwarded rosters to all agencies, which are to respond by Jan. 31 with any updates. For details, email
Stephanie.Damron@OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov.