EXCLUSIVE: Contractor Investigation Net Widens with Subpoenas Issued to Townships

Municipal officials from two townships confirmed this weekend that subpoenas were issued to them from Bucks County District Attorney’s Office last week. The records wanted by the district attorney’s office are connected to an investigation into private local contractor.

Falls Township Supervisor Bob Harvie said on Sunday that the municipality was contacted by investigators wanting records and documents from the code enforcement department last week.

“I know the company we’re looking into has done some work in Falls. Not a ton,” Harvie said

“The subpena came in, the manager then contacted the township solicitor and worked through it with our staff . As far as I know we’ve given everything that was asked for by the district attorney’s office,” Harvie told LevittownNow.com.

Lauren Gallagher, who works for the Law Firm  Rudolph, Clarke & Associates and represents Falls and Bensalem Township, confirmed both townships were subpoenaed as part of the investigation.

Asked is she could comment on specifics, Gallager said she could not since its an investigation being run by the DA and has a grand jury impaneled.

Gallagher could not confirm what township department documents were taken from.

An official with familiar with the investigation, who asked not to be identified, said: “the contractor in question was in the middle of a job in Lower Bucks that was never completed but payments were made for the work.

“It was a  big  job” the source said. They added that when the homeowner realized the work wasn’t going to be completed after several attempts to contact the contractor they called the district attorney’s office and that’s where this really starts.”

Asked about the specific location of the home in question, all the source would say again is its a home in Lower Bucks County.

The investigation is the same one that brought county detectives with a search warrant to the Bristol Township Licenses and Inspections office last month. The detectives walked out with several documents and District Attorney David Heckler said at the time that the search warrant was sealed by a judge.

Bristol Township hired an outside attorney to represent three township employees who were ordered to testify as part of an investigation.

Edward J. Zanine said the employees and Township Manager Bill McCauley will be represented by Harvey Sernovitz of Philadelphia.

A secret grand jury has been  impaneled to investigate a private  contractor who is also a Bristol Township Zoning Hearing Board member, Zanine said at the last council meeting.

The grand jury investigation came to light  on April 29 when a tip from an anonymous source called a reporter to say “Bristol Township offices are being raided” by county detectives. Authorities presented a sealed warrant and searched through files located in the License and Inspections Department headed by Glen Kucher.

Attempts to reach Heckler by this publication for comment have been unsuccessful.

Middletown Township Manager Stephanie Teoli Kuhls said Friday afternoon that the township had not been subpoenaed.

Asked if she expected that to happen, Teoli Kuhls declined to comment.