As FBI probe nets 2 charges, feds continue to build their case in Wayne County

DETROIT (WXYZ) - The FBI was kicking around Kwame Kilpatrick’s administration for years before issuing its first charge in the public corruption probe.  But the case made against two of Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano’s appointees took only a few months. 

Working with a confidential Wayne County vendor, the feds say they have clear evidence that former county Chief Information Officer Tahir Kazmi used his position at the county to get kickbacks from a vendor.  

“All the credit goes to the FBI for how this case has progressed so quickly over such a short period of time,” said William Kowalski,  a former assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s Detroit office. 

He worked on the case against Kilpatrick, and like many in the legal community, was surprised by the feds’ speed. Kowalski says in this case, time may have been an enemy of the feds.

“This one developed more quickly because you have a source out there who’s being pressured, an individual, a vendor who’s being continually pressured by these two individuals to take certain action, and you can only let that scenario play out for so long before either more suspicions occur,” Kowalski said.

Adding to the pressure to move fast, Kowalsk said, was when the FBI learned Tahir Kazmi had threatened to commit suicide if a county vendor said anything about the bribes.

“That has a shelf life, so you have to take action over a shorter period of time,” he said.

While Kazmi was named in an FBI subpoena back in October, many inside Wayne County were surprised to see that he was the first top official charged.  

Sources inside the Guardian Building say they expected to see Michael Grundy’s name in a criminal complaint first.  He was the assistant county CEO fired from the county after it was reported he’d pressured a county vendor for kickbacks, too.

Legal experts say it’s possible that the feds will use Kazmi to build a potential case against Grundy and other targets that could be charged later on. 

Former Deputy County CEO Azzam Elder and former economic development chief Turkia Mullin’s names were absent from last week’s criminal complaint. But legal experts say they’re far from in the clear.

“If I’m Turkia Mullin, I’m certainly reading this with great interest,” Kowalski said. “If I’m frankly Robert Ficano or many of the defense counsels within the city of Detroit, I’m reading this with great interest and then figuring out what my next step might be"

Robert Ficano has insisted all along that he won’t be charged in this probe, because he says he’s done nothing wrong. 

Even if that’s true, some Wayne County Commissioners say Ficano should resign anyway. They say if it took an FBI investigation to find out what’s going on in his own administration, what other surprises might be in store? 

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