The ex-treasurer of the Denver Sheriff's Union who pled guilty in Apr. 2000 to stealing funds from the union's coffers is running for the Denver City Council. Leonard F. Ortiz pled guilty to a misdemeanor theft charge and was ordered to return the money he took. Although Ortiz was ordered to repay more than $4,700 he had skimmed from union bank deposits and union checks he wrote to himself while treasurer, he admitted to stealing no more than $500. During the union's investigation, Ortiz reportedly attempted to obstruct auditors from reviewing the union's records.
Ortiz said Oct. 1 that he entered the plea after eighteen months of investigation to spare his family further anguish and to save his job. Despite the guilty plea, he denies he stole the money. Accusations of skimming also involved a commission he took on the sale of pins and badges he ordered for union members and money he spent for a table at a trade show, Ortiz said."They did an audit and they felt some of the expenditures were incorrect," Ortiz said. "I got slammed with those."
