What can go wrong when father is mayor/police chief/fire chief and daughter is town clerk? they become a crime duo

Lakeside police chief, town clerk indicted on embezzlement charges

LAKESIDE, Colorado — A grand jury has indicted two Lakeside town leaders on embezzlement and theft charges, prosecutors in Jefferson County said Thursday.

Police chief Robert Gordanier and town clerk Brenda Hamilton, who are father and daughter, are both facing charges for alleged crimes committed between July 2019 and November 2023.


According to prosecutors, on three separate occasions, Hamilton bought police vehicles from the town at well below market value, then sold them, earning thousands of dollars in profit.

The first time this happened was in July 2021, when Hamilton purchased a Dodge Charger from the town for $500, prosecutors said. The fair market value of the car was $8,588, prosecutors said. It was later sold to a third party.

The second purchase happened in 2021, prosecutors said. In September, the town bought a Ford Fusion from the Arapahoe County sheriff's office at a discount.

"The price was below fair market value and was specially offered by Arapahoe County to assist the smaller Lakeside Police Department," prosecutors said in a news release.



https://www.9news.com/article/news/crime/lakeside-police-chief-town-clerk-indicted/73-9bdfc832-e368-4b6d-9385-c75878a3c7fe


In April of 2017, the Town of Lakeside purchased a Chevrolet Tahoe from the Glenwood Springs Police Department for $8500. In September of 2022, with the approval of Gordanier, Hamilton purchased the Tahoe for $300 or it was given to her. Hamilton then sold the Tahoe to a third-party for between $6000 and $7000.

The investigation revealed that between January 2022 and November 2023, Hamilton used a Visa credit card associated with the Town of Lakeside to purchase items at Costco retail locations that were kept by Hamilton and not provided to the Town of Lakeside. Hamilton also charged a $120 membership fee for her personal Costco membership to the Town of Lakeside’s Visa account. The amount of Town of Lakeside funds spent on unauthorized purchases at Costco was $494.61.

The investigation further revealed that on July 25, 2023, Hamilton was operating a commissioned police vehicle in the Town of Lakeside. At approximately 7:03 p.m. the Town of Mountain View aired a suspicious person contact with an individual later identified as Dominick Bonavich. Following this airing, Hamilton observed Bonavich in the parking lot of the Walmart located at 5957 W. 44th Ave. Hamilton activated the red and blue flashing lights on the police vehicle she was driving and followed Bonavich in the police vehicle through a portion of the parking lot, in an attempt to stop, arrest, or detain Bonavich. Bonavich reacted to the activation of the red and blue lights on the police vehicle driven by Hamilton by fleeing away from the vehicle and attempting to forcibly take a motor vehicle from the possession of a citizen in the Walmart parking lot. A Walmart employee witnessed the attempted robbery by Bonavich and sought assistance from the police vehicle operated by Hamilton. Despite Hamilton having access to a police radio, Hamilton did not radio for assistance. The employee approached Bonavich and forcibly removed him from the vehicle, as no Lakeside police personnel were nearby.

https://firstda.co/news-update/grand-jury-indicts-town-of-lakeside-police-chief-and-town-clerk/