COURTS:

CSN official faces felony charges

34-count indictment alleges theft of college property

Steve Marcus / FILE

College of Southern Nevada construction chief William “Bob” Gilbert is charged with 13 counts of theft and four counts of misconduct by a public officer. Three of his subordinates are charged with assisting in the alleged thefts.

By Jeff German (contact), Charlotte Hsu (contact)

Friday, Sept. 26, 2008 | 2 a.m.

William “Bob” Gilbert, the College of Southern Nevada’s beleaguered construction chief, and three of his employees were indicted by a county grand jury Thursday on felony charges of stealing materials and equipment from the college to build his dream home on Mount Charleston.

Gilbert, 49, was charged with 13 counts of theft and four counts of misconduct by a public officer in a 34-count indictment that is expected to be returned in District Court this morning, according to sources close to the investigation.

“Based on the evidence gathered during the investigation, it is clear that Mr. Gilbert built his million-dollar house on the backs of Nevada taxpayers,” Chief Deputy Attorney General Conrad Hafen said.

Hafen said the Sun’s dogged reporting on the theft allegations provided the “primer” for the 18-month criminal investigation, which he described as the most significant, in terms of alleged corruption, ever undertaken by the attorney general’s 5-year-old Public Integrity Unit.

Sun reporter Christina Littlefield broke the story in March 2007 after more than a dozen former and current college employees told her they’d witnessed Gilbert misuse his position at the college. Employees accused Gilbert of directing multiple $400,000 college contracts to subcontractors in exchange for their working on his ranch-style estate for free or at reduced cost. Employees also alleged Gilbert used college materials, equipment and employees to develop the four-acre mountain property.

The materials allegedly stolen in the scheme included lumber, cinder blocks, door handles and door locks, sources said. A manlift, a paint sprayer and a chain hoist also are among the items allegedly taken from the college.

The three employees, who worked under Gilbert in CSN’s Facilities Management Department — Thad Skinner, 64, Matthew Goins, 56, and George Casal, 59 — were charged Thursday with assisting in the alleged thefts, which the sources said occurred from January 2002 to June 2007. Skinner is a construction manager for the college, Goins is a facility manager, and Casal is a building construction inspector. Their salaries range from about $66,000 to about $74,000.

In June 2007, state investigators conducted court-authorized searches at Gilbert’s college offices and home to gather the evidence that led to this week’s indictment.

Gilbert returned to his $147,204-a-year associate vice president’s job July 1 following a year of paid leave. He told the Sun he had requested the leave so he could spend his time proving his innocence.

Stepping to his defense this month were two people who not long ago were embroiled in a different college controversy — John Cummings, a CSN English professor and former lobbyist for the college, and Ron Remington, the college’s president from 2001 to ’04.

In 2003, regents, who govern higher education, demoted both men following closed meetings, after Cummings and Remington were accused of seeking to bring four-year degree programs to CSN without regents’ permission. A District Court judge later ruled the Board of Regents had violated open-meeting laws by holding closed sessions before the demotions.

Cummings sent Hafen an e-mail Sept. 14 that contained letters from Remington and Richard Carpenter, CSN’s president from 2004 to ’07, defending Gilbert.

“As this ordeal appeared to be dragging on concerning Bob and CSN,” Cummings wrote, “I did contact Presidents Carpenter and Remington and apprised them that a grand jury was soon to convene and that I believed that the areas of the Attorney General investigator’s interest were in the least simply uninformed and at the most potentially dangerous and blatantly misleading and embarrassing.”

In their letters, the two former presidents said Gilbert had kept college equipment at his home to do maintenance and repair work on CSN and other state colleges’ property because the schools were short on shop space.

Remington, an educational consultant who lives in Spring Creek, wrote that in 2003 “Gilbert and his staff dismantled several general labs and converted them to nursing labs by taking those materials to his Kyle Canyon property and cutting and welding to suit the need of nursing labs.”

In an interview, Remington said he wrote the letter because “I just wanted to clarify a few things ... Without understanding the circumstances, having equipment at home doesn’t sound very good.”

Carpenter, however, offered no such explanation in numerous discussions with the Sun during his tenure as president. More recently he has been unavailable for comment.

Gilbert told the Sun in 2007 that construction materials on his ranch belonged to him, and that what might have appeared to be CSN property was his and was left over from when he was a private contractor doing work for the college. CSN police later reported that serial numbers on materials and equipment on Gilbert’s property did not match those on equipment and materials CSN owned.

Discussion: 14 comments so far…

By Envirodoc007

9/26/08 at 3:01 a.m.

Suggest removal

Finally, maybe just maybe he will pay the price..and that said, what about the morons [in CSN administration] who supported this idiot? Wonder what kinda price they should pay...? maybe they too had their hands in the public till? - The saga continues
By Dirk

9/26/08 at 7:45 a.m.

Suggest removal

They were too busy creating sham jobs and hiring cronies & relatives, to pay attention to what Gilbert was doing. They were paid handsome settlements so that they'd slip into obscurity, which makes it a little surprising we'd see them here, defending Gilbert's actions...
By OG

9/26/08 at 9:13 a.m.

Suggest removal

I have been involved in higher education since 1994, and when I see stories like this it is really demoralizing.

Can someone explain to me why corruption runs rampant at CSN?

Seriously, I'd like someone to explain why so many higher-ups at CSN are on the take...
By Teaser

9/26/08 at 3:27 p.m.

Suggest removal

Because Las Vegas was founded on corruption and corruption is Nevada's #1 industry. Why is everyone always so shocked when corruption happens around here? This place would be nothing without vice.
By jfnance32

9/26/08 at 8:36 p.m.

Suggest removal

Will Rogers now fire this guy?

I guess not because Rogers too busy paying for Democratic mailers that come from the sewer.

Yuck........you smell really bad Rogers!!!!!
By shotcalla

9/26/08 at 8:46 p.m.

Suggest removal

In the two years that I have been employed with CSN I have questioned arbitrary and capricious budgeting and spending practices in addition to a long list of inefficient and ineffective processes & procedures.

While I'm not happy with the state of the economy in NV or the Governor's performance I applaud his tenacity to not fund NSHE and CSN as they requested.

Let's hope this house of cards is finally going to fall once and for all.
By CSNspeaks

9/26/08 at 10:27 p.m.

Suggest removal

Thank you Nevada Attorney General for your great job! Love and admiration from all Nevadans!

The following is an article entitled "Carpenter Gilbert Alliance" from the CSN faculty and staff's most loved but the CSN administration's most hated blog, "CSN Richard Carpenter Watch":

http://richard-carpenter-watch.blogspot....
By JustWant2Teach

9/27/08 at 12:04 a.m.

Suggest removal

I couldn't describe how excited we all are at CSN although the CSN administration has been awfully quiet. Justice will be served. Thanks AG! I found this comment from the Richard Carpenter Watch blog:

A wonderful day this turned out to be. Thank you Nevada Attorney General's office. You have not let us down. Thank you for a swift and thorough RAID on CSN campus on June 13, 2007, and a 36-hour RAID on Bob Gilbert's mansion. Thank you for a painstakingly detailed investigation and this water-proof indictment.

Thank you Nevada Grand Jury for the wonderful job you have done regardless John Cummings, Ron Remington or Richard Carpenter's interference.

Thank you Professor Sherry Rosenthal for holding up a blog fearlessly against all smear campaign from the CSN administrators. Thanks to all the contribution of facts from people in the know to expose this very ugly page of the CSN history.

Thank you Plebeian and Jungle for starting this blog to expose the very ugly administration out of your sense of justice. Your successor Taz is holding the fort beautifully.

Thank you CSN faculty and staff for coming forward with the facts you know to help indict Nevada State's thieve Bob Gilbert, who was shamelessly the CSN's Vice President, or still is?

CSN "President" Mike Richards, you'd better explain this one TODAY! Where is your announcement? Did AG and GJ not raid and indicte a CSN Vice President? Why are you not announcing this? Where is your leadership that's worth $280K? Did you not drive your car paid by the $8000 car allowance to come to work? Where is the news? You think we are idiots? Where is the news?

Where is the announcement of the CSN Vice President's indictment, Mike Richards?

9/26/08 10:12 PM
By jfnance32

9/27/08 at 1:37 a.m.

Suggest removal

Jim Rogers should be fired as from his job as Chancellor.

Chancellors normally are supposed to be focused on their duties of being the chief executive officer of the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE). Being CEO of NSHE has been the last thing on his mind lately.

He is focused like a laser beam on his war on Republicans. He has turned the NSHE into a cheerleader for Democratic Party.

The Democratic Party has used all the money that Rogers has given to them to generate mailers that come from the sewer. In those mailers, it accuses Republicans of wanting children to die. That sewer smell on Rogers is getting to be very repugnant.

Rogers no longer cares about doing his job as CEO of NSHE. Since 2007, Rogers has known that William "Bob" Gilbert has stolen from the NSHE. What has happened to Gilbert? He received a one year's paid vacation. I heard that Rogers is tough but that is really harsh. Gilbert has now returned from vacation and now we have two people earning money for the same position in NSHE. Roger is an excellent CEO at NSHE. The taxpayers are paying two people over $100,000 grand each to do the same job. I guess the budget cuts have not trickle down to that department yet.

Now, Gilbert has been indicted by the Clark County. What has Roger done? He has done nothing. Perhaps, Rogers will give Gilbert another harsh year's worth of paid vacation. Perhaps, the Regents should put Rogers on a permanent unpaid vacation.

You can go to the link below and find the Regents' contact information. The CEO of NSHE serves at the pleasure of the Board of Regents. The Board of Regents serves at the pleasure of the voters of the State of Nevada.

http://system.nevada.edu/Board-of-R/Bios...
By Justscribe

9/27/08 at 4:08 p.m.

Suggest removal

Nevada Attorney General and investigators"THANK YOU!
CSN has finally been exposed as a den of corruption and magnate for thieves. Chancellor Rogers and the Board of Regents have all aided and abetted the thieves in every way imaginable. At a time when Chancellor Rogers is barking, huffing and puffing at the Governor about Higher Education Funding, he and the Board of Regents have intentionally looked the other way to the thievery occurring at CSN. Rogers' dedication to NSHE is nothing but a myth, supported by a BOR only serving to serve themselves.

We are hopeful that the AG's office rewards Rogers, CSN President Mike Richards, VP Patty Charlton, Human Resources Director John Mueller, former President Richard Carpenter, former VP's Rand Key and Jeff Foshee with indictments too. They deserve them!

P.S. Can anyone tell me why Patty Charlton-Dayar, VP of Finance and the person that signed off on all of Bob Gilberts expenditures is still the Vice President? Rogers has fired people for less, so why is Ms. Dayar still in charge?
By DeejayG

12/10/08 at 5:38 p.m.

Suggest removal

I have been doing a little research, trying to find out who owns the property where the 'Gilbert Ranch' is located. Even the deposition doesn't ask, it just says: "did you visit the Gilbert residence?" Isn't anybody else interested?

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