By: The Desert Sun| Original Article at desertsun.com
The Palm Desert home of Beaumont City Manager Alan Kapanicas was raided Wednesday by the FBI, possibly in connection with a probe targeting the Beaumont city government.
FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said an investigation led officials to Palm Desert as well as Temecula. However, she did not provide any specifics.
Investigators from the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office and the FBI arrived at Beaumont City Hall on Wednesday morning and began hauling away hundreds of boxes, computers and other items, packing them into a trailer.
“I can confirm that search warrants have been served as part of an ongoing investigation,” D.A.’s office spokesman John Hall told City News Service. “Because this is an ongoing investigation, I will have no further comment at this time.”
In addition to the city building at 550 E. Sixth St., investigators also served warrants at the office of the Urban Logic Consultants, 871 W. Fourth St., Hall said.
The consulting firm has conducted contract work for the city and sought work in the Coachella Valley.
Last year, it tried to win an engineering contract from the city of Palm Springs for the city’s wastewater treatment plant, but was unsuccessful, said Josh Zipperman, a senior associate at Burke Rix Communications, the Palm Springs public relations firm that worked with Urban Logic on the proposal.
Zipperman said Burke Rix worked with Urban Logic only on that one project and the relationship lasted just one or two months.
The activity at Beaumont City Hall lasted several hours before investigators left, and the building, which had been closed, was locked back up.
Riverside County Supervisor Marion Ashley said he was aware of the investigation, but couldn’t comment.
“But obviously I’m concerned because it’s in an area of the county I represent,” Ashley said. “I stand ready to assist the city of Beaumont at its request.”
For two decades, the city has relied on Urban Logic Consultants to handle financial, engineering and wastewater management services — a close relationship that has been viewed by some locals with suspicion. The city has claimed the consultants ended up saving taxpayers money.
Phone calls to the house of Kieran McKiernan, the company’s owner, were answered by an unidentified child, who at one point bemoaned, “they keep calling,” before hanging up.
However, Ponce Yambot, an engineer who worked for the consulting firm until September 2014, said he was approached by the FBI about four years ago, wanting to know how financial decisions were determined within the company. Yambot said he told the agents exactly what he knew — nothing — and they never called back.
The timing of that conversation coincides with a lawsuit. In 2009, the Western Riverside Council of Governments argued that Beaumont had failed to pay funds for regional transportation projects for almost a decade.
Last year, the judge in that case sided with WRCOG, noting that the city had “misdirected” money. He then ordered the city to cough up almost $43 million, plus interest.
Just after 7 a.m. Wednesday, Terry Huff was getting ready to head to the gym when a flurry of activity near his home caught his attention. Along Sunrise Mountain View in Sun City Palm Desert, he could see the cars of various law enforcement agencies and their agents standing by.
“It seemed like they were outside a while trying to get in,” Huff said. “They seemed to be waiting and waiting to get in.”
When the agents finally gained access to the house — Huff said they didn’t break in, but appeared they were eventually let in — a man wearing a jacket that said “Police” across the back waved for the cars to come up to the house.
At least four FBI agents and two women from the District Attorney’s office — identified by their jackets — entered the home, Huff said. The operation involved a total of about 10 people and lasted a couple hours.
Huff was surprised to see that type of activity going on in his quiet neighborhood, but figured it was a white collar-type crime and not a violent crime scenario.
“We’re all old people out here,” he said, laughing.