Stone In Partnership With Subject of Sign Investigation

Felony Conviction Could Ruin Business Plans If Stockholder Loses ABC Permit

The outcome of the investigation of a falsified individual contribution report is apparently of little concern to Stephen M. Thomas, Sanford City Councilman Mike Stone, and Phillip S. Bray who formed a corporation on November 5, 2008 to buy and operate Good Fellas Private Lounge & Grill here in Sanford at 2709 Lee Ave. (see articles of incorporation). All three of the stockholders will be required to have ABC permits and were granted temporary ABC permits (see permits) on November 12 and have applied for regular permits. The temporary permits will not expire until February 9, 2009. State ABC regulations (click here to read the requirements) state that to be eligible to receive and to hold an ABC permit, a person shall not have been convicted of a felony within three years, and, if convicted of a felony before then, shall have had his citizenship restored. But Thomas has made repeated statements to different media outlets and a large group of friends that he did indeed make an untruthful certification to the Lee County Board of Elections under penalty of perjury. State election law states:

Any person who shall knowingly make any false affidavit or shall knowingly swear or affirm falsely to any matter or thing required by the terms of this Article to be sworn or affirmed shall be guilty of a Class I felony . § 163 90.3

Perhaps Stone and Bray know something about the status of the state's investigation into Thomas' admitted role into falsely signing a certification regarding those infamous red and white signs. While Stone claims plans for purchasing Goodfella's were under way before the current controversy developed, the three appear to be "betting the farm" that Steven Thomas will escape being charged and convicted of a felony. Stone denies knowing anything about the status of the investigation and says Thomas has not revealed the names to him. There has been considerable speculation that Thomas could win a grant of immunity if he cooperated with investigators and identified the "two friends" who persuaded him to sign the certification and identities any others who were behind the attempted cover up and why they picked Thomas to sign the form. Others have suggested the matter will not be given a high priority by election officials leaving no one charged with the crime. Thomas, who operates a tobacco farm on Castleberry Road, signed an official certification filed with the local board of elections certifying that he was responsible for the political signs that mysteriously appeared around Lee County. Shortly after word of the filing spread, Thomas insisted that he was "victimized" when he was asked to put his name on the paperwork and says he had nothing to do with the purchase or distribution of the signs. Thomas would not say who asked him to put his name on the certification filed with the Lee County Board of Elections indicating that he paid for signs which read "No Tax, No Hincks" and "No Landfill, No Hincks." He has continued to insist that he didn't order, pay for, or distribute the signs or know anything about their purchase. "I'm not involved in politics," Thomas said. "I put my name on that piece of paper because a couple of people who I thought were my friends asked me to. They said that nothing would come of it. I was victimized." Jamie Kelly, a first-term Democrat who was not up for re-election on Nov. 4, filed an amended campaign finance report the next day reporting that it was he and not Thomas that had purchased $2,842.48 worth of anti-Hincks signs from the Victory Store in Davenport, Iowa on Sept. 13. That document has identical information as the form Steven Thomas signed the day before except for the date of purchase. Thomas said later that day again that he did not purchase the signs. Kelly told reporters he did not know Thomas personally and that he was not involved with any effort to force him to sign the election reports. Thomas, on the other hand, has maintained he is a long time acquaintance of Kelly, and friends say he remains furious over Kelly's assertion that the two are not friends. The Iowa firm that made the signs has confirmed that it was Kelly who ordered the signs and that the information on the form appears to be correct. If this is the case, Kelly was 9 days late filling the certification but would not have made a "false statement." Some believe that there was no original intention to report the expenditure at all but panicked when word was about to break on who was responsible. (see post) Nevertheless, questions remain such as who had access to the information about the vendor and cost of the signs that correctly appeared on the form filed by Thomas, and if that suggests that Kelly may have directed or had any knowledge of the attempted cover up. Another item that has not been determined is who owned the credit card that was used to pay for the signs and if it was a corporate or individual card. The Sanford Herald first called on Kelly to disclose all that he knows about the incident. When he failed to do that, it has called on Kelly to step down until he is cleared of any involvement. The incident continues to be a matter of intense local interest and speculation as to who approached Thomas. Most speculation and a number of rumors have centered on a current Sanford law enforcement officer known to harbor a long time grudge against Hincks and to have close ties with the family of Oscar Keller, Jamie Kelly's grandfather, a well known political figure. Meanwhile an October 28 complaint (see post) alleges that "an individual or individuals conspired" to have Thomas take the fall for their unwillingness to sign the required paperwork needed for campaign expenditures by having Thomas sign his name on a false report. There has been no official response to the complaint which was forwarded to the State Board of Elections. Community activist Jimmy Fraley is said to be considering a petition drive urging the Board of Elections to turn the matter over to the State Bureau of Investigation and expedite the investigation.