18 June 2009
Indictments issued in Pedernales Electric grand jury probe

Filed under Investigation

Original Austin American Statesman article

By Claudia Grisales | Wednesday, June 17, 2009, 04:28 PM
UPDATE:
The indictments are against Bennie Fuelberg, Pedernales’ former general manager, and Walter Demond, who works for PEC’s former longtime law firm, their lawyers confirmed.
“Bennie Fuelberg put his heart and soul into PEC for 30 years. He never stole one penny,” said Chris Gunter, Fuelberg’s lawyer.
Gerry Morris, who represents Demond, said there is “no question that they will be here to answer the charges.”
Both lawyers were at the Blanco County Courthouse this afternoon when the indictments were issued.
A Blanco County grand jury today indicted two people on felony charges related to the months-long investigation of past wrongdoing at the Pedernales Electric Cooperative. The Texas Attorney General’s Office said no names would be released until the two people were arrested.
Here’s the Attorney General’s statement: “The Blanco County grand jury has indicted two defendants on felony charges. These are the result of the Office of Attorney General investigation and the unlawful conduct at the Pedernales Electric Cooperative. “The grand jury charged two defendants with three felony charges. Both of them have identical charges.” The charges included misapplication of fiduciary duty in excess of $200,000; theft of property in excess of $200,000 and money laundering between $100,000 and $200,000. The first two charges are first-degree felonies, the statement said. The other is a second-degree felony.

2009-06-18  ::  admin