Posted 2:15 pm Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Whitehouse Police Chief, Fire Chief Being Investigated
Smith County Precinct 3 Constable Dustin Rust today announced an ongoing investigation of City of Whitehouse officials for financial irregularities and other undisclosed charges.
Fire Chief Ronny Fite is currently being investigated for financial irregularities in the fire department's budget, along with issues from when he worked for the city, Rust said in a news release. Other charges are pending.
Police Chief Rick Waller is also under investigation and will be placed on suspension by the City of Whitehouse until findings are complete, Rust said.
“Because of the complexity of the case, we have focused on one charge out of several at this time. Due to the investigation and the evidence presented, the City of Whitehouse is going to place the Police Chief on suspension until the completion of the findings,” said Rust. “Once our case is complete, we will forward our findings on to the grand jury.”
Several months ago, a firefighter with the Whitehouse Volunteer Fire Department notified the Precinct 3 Constable’s office that he believed there were some financial discrepancies he had observed in the ESD#2 Whitehouse Volunteer Fire Department budget records involving Fite. He filed a report and requested an investigation into the allegations by the constable's office, Rust said. Two investigators from within the constable’s office were assigned.
During the investigation, several other persons were introduced as being allegedly being involved, including Waller. As Fire Chief, Fite worked for the City of Whitehouse as the Fire Marshal and City Manager before being terminated from those positions. While looking into general fuel records, some discrepancies arose around Waller, Rust said.
Waller is being investigated for acquiring fuel in his personal vehicle from city pumps while being reimbursed by the city for a vehicle allowance, Rust said. He was allegedly getting reimbursement from the city while using city fuel.
“We are also working with the District Attorney’s office on this investigation,” said Rust. “We have held the investigation back publicly because we wanted to ensure there was what we feel to be good evidence before we announced that a prominent figure is being investigated. We did not want to tarnish the reputation of a public figure if nothing was there.”
So far no charges have been filed, and the cases are still under active investigation.
The City of Whitehouse is cooperating with the investigation, according to Rust.
Fire Chief Ronny Fite is currently being investigated for financial irregularities in the fire department's budget, along with issues from when he worked for the city, Rust said in a news release. Other charges are pending.
Police Chief Rick Waller is also under investigation and will be placed on suspension by the City of Whitehouse until findings are complete, Rust said.
“Because of the complexity of the case, we have focused on one charge out of several at this time. Due to the investigation and the evidence presented, the City of Whitehouse is going to place the Police Chief on suspension until the completion of the findings,” said Rust. “Once our case is complete, we will forward our findings on to the grand jury.”
Several months ago, a firefighter with the Whitehouse Volunteer Fire Department notified the Precinct 3 Constable’s office that he believed there were some financial discrepancies he had observed in the ESD#2 Whitehouse Volunteer Fire Department budget records involving Fite. He filed a report and requested an investigation into the allegations by the constable's office, Rust said. Two investigators from within the constable’s office were assigned.
During the investigation, several other persons were introduced as being allegedly being involved, including Waller. As Fire Chief, Fite worked for the City of Whitehouse as the Fire Marshal and City Manager before being terminated from those positions. While looking into general fuel records, some discrepancies arose around Waller, Rust said.
Waller is being investigated for acquiring fuel in his personal vehicle from city pumps while being reimbursed by the city for a vehicle allowance, Rust said. He was allegedly getting reimbursement from the city while using city fuel.
“We are also working with the District Attorney’s office on this investigation,” said Rust. “We have held the investigation back publicly because we wanted to ensure there was what we feel to be good evidence before we announced that a prominent figure is being investigated. We did not want to tarnish the reputation of a public figure if nothing was there.”
So far no charges have been filed, and the cases are still under active investigation.
The City of Whitehouse is cooperating with the investigation, according to Rust.
