Journal-News.com

HAMILTON — The FBI investigation that elicited guilty pleas from Butler County Auditor Kay Rogers appears far from over.

FBI Spokesman Mike Brooks won't comment on the case, saying, "This is an ongoing investigation."

But the court filings that list Rogers' guilty plea to charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and filing a false income tax return do reference co-conspirators — by initial, not by name.

Those records state three people — O.C., J.S. and K.V — were employed by a company identified as DC, and attempted to obtain $5.3 million from National City Bank in relation to business contracts between the company and Butler County.

This company is Dynus Corp., which took out a $4 million loan in the county's name for work the county never approved. Rogers pleaded guilty to using her post to help secure that loan.

Court records state Rogers vouched for J.S. as an agent of the county, and that J.S. paid Rogers $9,500 for the deal through a "third party intermediary company," listed only as "HRH." Rogers returned the money eight months later, after the loan was discovered.

In documents with the same dates as those listed in the records, Rogers vouched that former Dynus President Jim Smith was an agent of the county.

Neither Rogers nor Smith returned calls for comment.

Former county Commissioner Michael Fox, who championed the fiber optics project and sat on the commission when the deal imploded, said it's clear to him that Smith's dealings were "dishonest."

"(Smith) assured us that he was not asking the county to invest one dollar in his proposal; yet all the while he had secretly entered into an agreement with National City to borrow money on the county's behalf," Fox said. "No matter how one cuts it, that's pure fraud and deceit," he said.

Rogers maintains her post for now, though the pressure to resign is increasing.

County Prosecutor Robin Piper said he's sending Rogers a letter today, Feb. 27, urging her to step down gracefully so he doesn't have to find a way to force it. "I'm urging her to consider there are a lot of good people who work at the auditor's office and for the good of the office ... and for the good of the citizens of Butler County, her resignation would be in the best interest of everyone."