After concluding a six-week investigation, Van Valkenburg said he has enough evidence to bring Seymour to court for the theft of about $645,000 from an escrow account the airport had established to purchase hundreds of acres from Charles and Nancy Deschamps for new runways.
"After confirmation of the theft of that money, we also found out that he charged a generator, a welder and a power washer to the airport," Van Valkenburg said.
Van Valkenburg said Seymour kept the generator, but gave the $999 power washer to two men the airport bought land from in 2000.
When asked about the purchases, Seymour told airport board members the power washer was part of the property negotiation deal, yet no board member knew of any such agreement and there was no paperwork or documentation that described the arrangement.
Van Valkenburg also charged Seymour with official misconduct for misrepresenting himself in his official capacity to bankers and insurers when he took the $645,000 from an escrow account and put it into a private limited-liability company he formed with his wife.
The entire matter came to light early in November when one of the airport's fiscal officers was asking Seymour for documentation of significant expenses Seymour claimed were the responsibility of the airport. Suspicion mounted when Seymour could not provide any material to support his claim.
Although other names are associated with Seymour's alleged criminal activities, Van Valkenburg said it is unlikely more people will be charged.
"This case is of significant magnitude in terms of embezzlement, and one that causes great concern because it involved a public employee," he said. "I have never seen anything like this in the 30 years or so I have been involved in law practice in Missoula.
"We have to take a strong stance in this case to prevent such a thing from occurring again."
Seymour's attorney, Milton Datsopoulos, did not return the Missoulian's phone call.
Here's how Van Valkenburg laid out the series of events in his affidavit filed Monday in Missoula District Court:
In a statement given to Missoula County Deputy Sheriff Pat Estill following his suspension by the Airport Authority, Seymour admitted taking three checks totaling $654,153.87 and a Miller/Bluestar 6000 combination generator/welder purchased with airport funds for $2,313.70.
The first check - for $200,732 - was drawn on First Interstate Bank and made payable to Aviation Management Consultants.
The money was part of a bridge loan the Airport Authority received to finance the purchase of 759 acres of land from Charles and Nancy Deschamps.
As part of that purchase, Seymour told the Airport Authority that $200,000-plus had to be paid to the consulting company.
He did not, however, tell the board that Aviation Management Consultants was actually a limited-liability company created by Seymour and his wife, Becky, and located at their home address.
The other two checks were drawn on an escrow account at Insured Titles Inc., which handled the real-estate closing on the Deschamps land.
The day after the June 25, 2003, closing on the land purchase, Seymour wrote a letter to Insured Titles directing that a payment be made to Barnard Dunkelberg & Co., an airport consulting firm in Tulsa, Okla., for $180,093.40.
Seymour knew the firm had not provided any services to Missoula County in regard to the land purchase, the affidavit said.
And he told officers at the consulting company that he needed to place the money with them because it was from the Federal Aviation Administration "and needed to be kept separate from airport operating funds."
That November, Seymour again contacted Barnard Dunkelberg & Co., and asked that the money be sent to Seymour in a check made payable to First Interstate Bank.
On Dec. 30, 2003, Seymour wrote to Insured Titles and directed that another payment of $264,328.47 be made to his limited liability company, even though he knew the firm had not provided any services to Missoula International Airport.
An investigation following Seymour's suspension revealed that he spent at least $558,130 of the money in his LLC's account for a $45,000 loan to his nephew, Craig Hardy; a $180,000 loan to B.J. Lefler and Patti Lefler; the purchase of a $185,130 commercial lot from Missoula Saws Inc.; and purchase of a duplex at 527-529 E. Front St. in Missoula for $148,000.
While investigating the thefts, Estill also learned of several other questionable - and in several cases, illegal - activities, according to the affidavit filed Monday.
The first involved the Airport Authority's purchase of 24 acres from B.J. Lefler and Roger Hall on Dec. 4, 2000, for $603,544.
The purchase price, approved on Seymour's recommendation, was more than $350,000 higher than the highest appraised value of the land.
Estill also learned that Seymour had accepted $60,000 from Lefler and Hall on March 13, 2001, ostensibly for the purchase of 20 head of bison cows. To date, the affidavit said, "Lefler and Hall have never taken delivery of the cows or shown any interest in the alleged purchase."
Estill also came across Seymour's purchase of a $999 power washer from Home Depot on an airport credit card on June 29, 2001.
He then gave the power washer to Lefler and Hall "as part of an oral agreement with them to sell their land to the Airport Authority."
Since his suspension late last year, Seymour has paid $628,602.97 in restitution to the Missoula Airport Authority, has resigned his position and agreed not to pursue any claim against the airport for accrued benefits.
Seymour's initial appearance in District Court is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Monday, Jan. 24.
He was named director of Missoula International Airport in December 1999 after 17 years as an airport employee.
The four felony theft charges filed against Seymour on Monday each carry a possible sentence of one to 10 years in the Montana State Prison and/or a $50,000 fine.
The misdemeanor theft charge is punishable by up to six months in the Missoula County jail and/or a $1,000 fine.
And the four counts of official misconduct, also misdemeanors, are each punishable by six months in the county jail and/or a $500 fine.
Reporter Betsy Cohen can be reached at 523-5253 or at bcohen@missoulian.com
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