Bell hearing: Rizzo ordered to stand trial for conflict of interest, one charge dismissed

Former Bell City Administrator Robert Rizzo has been ordered to stand trial for allegedly becoming financially involved in a horse-racing business with a contractor who did millions of dollars of business for the city.

A second count alleging Rizzo misappropriated public funds through his relationship with Dennis Tarango was dismissed.

Tarango served as the city's planning director and also did engineering work for the city. He and Rizzo were partners in Golden Aggie Ranch Inc., which has since gone out of business.

Judge Henry J. Hall suggested the Los Angeles County district attorney's office consider filing perjury charges against Rizzo for allegedly failing to declare his horse-racing partnership on a state-required disclosure form.

Hall said prosecutors also could file charges alleging Rizzo violated the state's Fair Political Practices act.

Wednesday's hearing concluded a weeks-long process that resulted in eight current and former city officials being ordered to stand trial for misappropriating millions from the city with oversized-salary deals and loans.

The salary scandal in Bell has left the city on the edge of insolvency and facing deep budget cuts.

RELATED:

Bell seeks emergency legislation to certify election results

-- Corina Knoll

Photo: Former Bell City Administrator Robert Rizzo reacts as his former partner, Dennis Tarango, testifies at Rizzo's preliminary hearing in Los Angeles on Tuesday. Credit: Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Joe Camaacho]

Why is police chief Adams being allowed to escape criminal charges? Is it because of his relationship with DA Cooley?

[imacobru]

Well unfortunately Mr. Rizzo will not be losing any weight soon, especially once he's on the average prison diet - Between 2000 and 3000 calories a day.

(Excerpt from an article on standard Prison fare.) For inmates in the state's correctional facilities, a typical breakfast menu consists of cereal, toast, jam, jelly, doughnuts, coffee and fruit. Lunch may be spaghetti with meatballs, salad with dressing, bread or rolls, brownies and milk. And the dinner menu may show meat loaf with mushroom gravy, Spanish rice, buttered collard greens, bread and butter, jelly and milk.

He's going to have it pretty nice once this trial is finally over - Sit around all day and do nothing, which is what he does now....and did do when at the City of Bell. He had everyone else do his dirty all he did was cash the checks and go to the races.

Hope where ever he ends up they have a cell large enough to hold this slug. Can you imagine that poor guy that has to share with him....well at least you know Rizzo won't be sleeping on the top bunk, he'd never be able to get off the ground that high.

[JOSEPH]

Well lets see what comes of all this. I'm still waiting on Randy Adams. I hope the D.A.'s office will not pardon everyone in order to get info from them. They need to play hardball with these crooks!

[Kinko Da Clown]

Hope Rizzo the Rat gets put away for a long time. He will probably lose weight as I lost about 30 lbs doing a year at club FED.

[Bill Fritag]

Camaacho is right - Randy Adams participated in fraud by agreeing, in the contract that his friend Angela Spaacia wrote, that he would claim disability when he retired - who ever heard of disability claims going into a job, wake up Cooley don't let friendship and your misguided love for all police chiefs get in the way of your judgement!

[troyno]

Adams hiring was a sham. How about at least charging him with filing a false disability claim.

[Jim]

Crooked cops nearly always get away with it because they have the dirt on the crooked politicians. And yes Cooley is a politician with quite a large closet.

[JZ]

Conflict of interest?!?! That's it? I must be missing something.......what about the gazillion other misdeeds??

[Brandon]

This guy is another example of the greedy FAT pigs in America ! ... just looking at his appearance is evident he must have practiced gluttony too !

[sholmes]

Conflict of interest? This is no bid deal at LA Department of Water & Power. Check and balances virtually do not exist because its audit director - supposed watchdog -- wore two hats--as enforcer and violator, through connivance with certain top management, like Raman Raj, the former CEO ousted by the GM last February 2011. The newly appointed GM no wonder quickly ousted Raman within a month of taking the leadership of LADWP.
With the audit watchdog conniving with certain top management to favor outside contractors, there is definitely a total breakdown of internal control system of check and balances within LADWP. This is the highest form of violation of conflict of interest, because it uses the stature and position of integrity as an audit director.
Evidences show that the audit director manipulated and covered up audit findings worth over $7 million in two contracts, where Raman is closely connected.
The fraudulent audit practice involves suppressing the entire audit report, despite working papers supporting findings of bidding collusioin and price rigging. The memo to the Board of Water and Power Commissioners recommending the exclusive cartel of 6 contractors are phony. The memo bypassed the LA City Council. The recycling capability of each Cartel members were fraudulently exaggerated.
In the contract with Convergent Group, payments disallowed by contract were fraudeulently channeled by the Audit Director as change order to favor the contractor. Unnecessary and useless spare parts were purchased. Total losses alone given away by audit director to favor Convergent Group is estimated at around $6 million.

Those losses alone for two contracts came out within a year of audit engagement ---- meaning there are more than what the eyes had so far seen. Audit director smartly cut short the audit engagement to prevent further audit discoveries of anomalies.

[sholmes]

Conflict of interest? This is no big deal but business as usual at LA Department of Water & Power. Check and balances virtually do not exist because its audit director - supposed watchdog -- wore two hats--as enforcer and violator, through connivance with certain top management, like Raman Raj, the former CEO ousted by the GM last February 2011. The newly appointed GM no wonder quickly ousted Raman within a month of taking the leadership of LADWP.
With the audit watchdog conniving with certain top management to favor outside contractors, there is definitely a total breakdown of internal control system of check and balances within LADWP. This is the highest form of violation of conflict of interest, because it uses the stature and position of integrity as an audit director.
Evidences show that the audit director manipulated and covered up audit findings worth over $7 million in two contracts, where Raman is closely connected.
The fraudulent audit practice involves suppressing the entire audit report, despite working papers supporting findings of bidding collusioin and price rigging. The memo to the Board of Water and Power Commissioners recommending the exclusive cartel of 6 contractors are phony. The memo bypassed the LA City Council. The recycling capability of each Cartel members were fraudulently exaggerated.
In the contract with Convergent Group, payments disallowed by contract were fraudeulently channeled by the Audit Director as change order to favor the contractor. Unnecessary and useless spare parts were purchased. Total losses alone given away by audit director to favor Convergent Group is estimated at around $6 million.

Those losses alone for two contracts came out within a year of audit engagement ---- meaning there are more than what the eyes had so far seen. Audit director smartly cut short the audit engagement to prevent further audit discoveries of anomalies.

[Sophie]

I so feel this man is going to get away easy on this. I can't imagine that "conflict of interest" is going to carry any serious jail time.