COLUMBUS, Ohio – The head of the Southern Ohio Port Authority (SOPA) and his wife are facing a litany of felony charges after a Scioto County grand jury indicted them Friday, alleging they accepted bribes in exchange for public contracts, according to Ohio Auditor of State Keith Faber.
Robert P. Horton, who also serves as director of the Scioto County Economic Development Department, was indicted on 15 charges, including engaging in a pattern of corrupt activities, theft in office, telecommunications fraud, aggravated theft, money laundering, tampering with public records, tampering with evidence, bribery, having an unlawful interest in a public contract, and falsification.
His wife, Lioubov E. Horton, faces 12 felony charges, including engaging in a pattern of corrupt activities, theft in office, telecommunications fraud, aggravated theft, money laundering, tampering with evidence, and having an unlawful interest in a public contract.
The indictments were filed in Scioto County Common Pleas Court, with attorneys from the Ohio Auditor of State’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) appointed as special prosecutors at the request of the Scioto County Prosecutor’s Office.
The investigation into the Hortons began after SIU received a complaint regarding an allegedly improper contract between SOPA and an out-of-state company for a building at the Southern Ohio Aeronautical Regional Business Park, located near the Greater Portsmouth Regional Airport.
According to SIU investigators, Robert Horton allegedly received hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes through a shell company owned by his wife.
No court dates have been announced yet, and both Horton and his wife are expected to appear for arraignment in the coming days.