C uyahoga c orruption probes ex tend

into Lak e, G eauga

By Jason Lea
POSTED: 10/19/09, 12:01 AM EDT | UPDATED: ON 10/19/2009

Reports of corruption have seemed to be coming from everywhere for the last year.
Accusations have been made against members of the Cuyahoga County government,
contractors, hospital executives, real estate buyers and state transportation officials.
The investigations have centered in Cuyahoga County, but they have ramifications in
Lake and Geauga counties beyond the Cuyahoga border. And while some suspects have
been convicted, others are awaiting trial and the ongoing probes may generate more
charges.
Locally, the home and office of a Concord Township man have been searched as part of
the federal investigation of Cuyahoga County government figures.
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Also, a Northeast Ohio mortgage fraud investigation led to the indictment of two men
from Lake County, one from Geauga and nine people from the eastern end of Cuyahoga.
The 45 suspects indicted in this case are accused of buying homes, inflating their value,
reselling them to unqualified buyers and falsifying mortgage applications, according to
Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray and Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason.
Alleged ringleader Uri Gofman, 36, of Beachwood, faces more than 100 counts of theft,
tampering with records, money laundering and engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity
in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court. He also faces charges of wire fraud and
conspiracy in the Northern Ohio U.S. District Court for related actions.
He is accused of buying several foreclosed homes with his investors' money. Then he
would refinance them, claiming to have improved the property, but any improvements
were slight, prosecutors said. Finally, he would sell the houses to other people after a
sizable increase in price, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors say several local people were involved in the mortgage fraud, including
Leonid Simkhovich, 31, of Wickliffe and Miroslav Simkhovich, 35, of Willoughby.
According to Mason's office, the Simkhoviches knowingly put false information on real
estate documents and signed documents asserting that the facts were true when they
knew they were not. Leonid Simkhovich faces six counts of theft, tampering with records
and telecommunications fraud. Miroslav Simkhovich faces 16 charges of theft and
tampering with records.
A Geauga County man is also involved in the investigation. Dave Pirichy, 39, of Burton
Township worked as a mortgage broker for Central National Mortgage. Prosecutors said

he helped to provide false information on loan documents. He faces 29 counts of

complicity to theft, tampering with records, telecommunications fraud and engaging in
a pattern of corrupt behavior. He also faces wire fraud charges in federal court.
Other people who face several related charges in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court
include George Gardner and Howard Siefer of Euclid, Gennadiy and Marina
Simkhovich, Eric Gesis and Samyel Goldshtein of Highland Heights, James Leoni, and
Yan and Irina Satanovskiy.
The state's investigation of the Ohio Department of Transportation also led to charges
for local people.
An 18-month investigation by the Ohio Inspector General accused vendors and ODOT
supervisors of being involved in a scheme in which money, vacations and strippers were
exchanged for state contracts.
Two of those vendors who were ultimately convicted in Cuyahoga County Common
Pleas Court were Richard Goldizen of Perry Township and Christian Hilty of Chagrin
Falls. Hilty, 51, was convicted of theft, and Goldizen, 54, was convicted of attempted
tampering with records. They were both sentenced to six months in prison and fined
$2,000.
Jeffrey Bauer, 42, of Willoughby Hills also pleaded guilty to counts of bribery and
attempted tampering with records. He was sentenced to six months in prison and fined
$3.000. He is one of the people accused of steering ODOT contracts to friends and
associates.
The federal investigation of Cuyahoga County government and area contractors has
shaken Cuyahoga but has only had an indirect affect on Lake and Geauga counties. A
Concord Township man's home and his office in Garfield Heights were raided, but he
has not been charged with or accused of anything. A Willoughby company was named in
a federal subpoena and search warrant pertinent to the investigation, but the company
and its owners have not been charged with any wrongdoing.
The closest the corruption investigation has come to The News-Herald coverage area is
the conviction of John Carroll of Auburn Township for bribery, lying to the FBI and
filing false income tax returns.
Carroll, the former vice president of MetroHealth Medical Center, was accused of taking
bribes while working at the hospital.
None of the three corruption investigations has concluded.