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The Honorable Michael Wetzel, Judge of the Clackamas County Circuit Court sentenced three former Oregon Department of Transportation workers and one of their spouses today on multiple charges stemming from a theft and reselling scheme spanning from approximately 2004 to 2020 that has estimated to cost taxpayers $5-6 million.
The former ODOT employees abused their official positions to purchase equipment using ODOT vendor accounts, created fraudulent invoices, stockpiled the fraudulently purchased equipment and resold the items for personal profit.
Starting in 2004, John Tipton an assistant manager of a landscape crew at ODOT began a criminal business of repairing chainsaws using parts stolen from ODOT. Over the years he involved his supervisor Frank Smead Jr. and his colleague Autumn Arndt.
Tipton would purchase equipment and parts using ODOT accounts, take the items either to his home in Lake Oswego or a storage unit to hold for re-sale. Smead and Arndt would participate in selling the fraudulently purchased items online. Smead also approved invoices of the fraudulently purchased items for payment by ODOT stating the purchases was for official ODOT business.
Marta Smead, spouse of Frank Smead also sold the fraudulently purchased equipment online and was charged.
The sentences are as follows:
John Tipton (former ODOT employee)
Sentenced to 12 years in prison for the following charges:
Aggravated Theft I (six counts)
Computer Crime (nine counts)
Theft I (12 counts)
Official Misconduct I (nine counts)
Frank Smead, Jr. (former ODOT employee)
Sentenced to seven years in prison for the following charges:
Aggravated Theft I (five counts)
Computer Crime (nine counts)
Theft I (four counts)
Official Misconduct I (nine counts)
Autumn Arndt (former ODOT employee)
Sentenced to five years in prison for the following charges:
Aggravated Theft I (five counts)
Computer Crime (nine counts)
Theft I (four counts)
Official Misconduct I (nine counts)
Marta Smead (wife of Frank Smead, not employed by ODOT)
Sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison for the following charges:
Aggravated Theft I (one count)
Computer Crime (six counts)
Theft I (six counts)
The court will hold a restitution hearing in the spring for the four defendants.
ODOT officials discovered the actions of the defendants during an investigation into an unrelated ODOT investigation and then turned evidence over to Oregon State Police.
The Oregon State Police investigated and Clackamas County Senior Deputy Attorney Rusty Amos prosecuted the case.