Published: October 27, 2009 11:31 pm      

Former chief charged in gaming theft

Catlettsburg — Catlettsburg’s former fire chief was arrested Monday night after being indicted for allegedly misappropriating funds from the fire department’s charitable gaming operations.

Danny W. Cornette, 34, who resigned his post in March, was arrested at 9:35 p.m. by the Boyd County Sheriff’s Department. He was lodged in the Boyd County Detention Center.

A Boyd County grand jury on Friday returned an indictment charging Cornette with five counts of theft by failure to make required disposition. Each of the counts is a Class D felony that carries a prison sentence of one to five years.

The case was presented to the grand jury by a special prosecutor, Brent Turner, who is commonwealth’s attorney for the 31st Judicial Circuit, Floyd County.

Cornette’s indictment and arrest were the result of an investigation launched in February by the Kentucky Department of Charitable Gaming. The state agency initiated the probe after being alerted by the city police department to a possible problem with the games.

According to the indictment, Cornette failed to deposit funds from the Catlettsburg Volunteer Fire Department’s bingo games at Kentucky Farmers Bank on five separate occasions between October 2007 and December 2008, and dealt with (the money) as his own.”

The total amount allegedly stolen by Cornette was $43,648.85, the indictment states.

The department’s biweekly games, which were at the People Helping People bingo hall on U.S. 60 at Coalton, were suspended after the investigation was launched and the fire department’s charitable gaming license was suspended and later voluntarily placed in escrow.

The Catlettsburg Volunteer Fire Department began using bingo proceeds to assist both the fire and police departments in purchasing equipment about 15 years ago.

The Department of Charitable Gaming assigned the investigation to Turner in August for possible prosecution.

Cornette tendered his resignation in March. City officials said at the time he was stepping down for health reasons — principally an accidental gunshot wound to the leg he suffered last year — and that he was leaving on good terms. The city council appointed Deputy Chief Robert “Rusty” Armstrong to replace Cornette.

Cornette is scheduled to be arraigned at 9 a.m. Friday before Boyd Circuit Judge C. David Hagerman.

A grand jury indictment is a formal accusation of a crime and does not establish guilt.

KENNETH HART can be reached at khart@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2654.