By Associated Press
Tuscaloosa AL – The former head of the Alabama Fire College must repay $1.7 million that he funneled to himself, family and friends, a federal jury ordered Thursday.
Jurors found ex-college director W.L. Langston guilty of theft, fraud, conspiracy and other crimes during their second day of deliberation.
Following a separate hearing after the verdict, jurors said Langston should forfeit $1.5 million of his assets for stealing taxpayer money and an additional $193,000 for a money laundering conviction.
U.S. Attorney Alice Martin said the jury "saw the Langston crooked deals for what they were crimes."
During seven days of testimony, prosecutors tried to show that Langston treated the school and its foundation as his personal property, using funds to build a $335,000 home for himself and his wife near Montgomery, buy appliances, pay tuition and provide funds for his children and grandchildren.
When the FBI began investigating the fire college finances, Langston and an associate tried to cover their tracks, prosecutor Tamarra Johnson told jurors in closing statements Wednesday.
The FBI probe of the fire college, which is on the campus of Shelton State Community College, mushroomed into a wide-ranging probe of corruption in the two-year college system.
Defense attorneys said Langston had made the small training school one of the nation's best firefighter and responder academies. He made some bad decisions, defense attorney Anthony Joseph said, but added: "A mistake is not a crime."
The defense had depicted the case as a witch hunt built on lies.
Key government testimony came from former state officials who have pleaded guilty in the corruption probe, including fired two-year college chancellor Roy Johnson. He told jurors that he and Langston traded favors, including hiring each other's children for state-funded jobs in which they didn't do any meaningful work.
Johnson awaits sentencing on his guilty plea to conspiracy and other charges. He admitted to receiving nearly $1 million in kickbacks for himself, family and friends.
Former Rep. Bryant Melton, D-Tuscaloosa, also testified that Langston arranged for him to receive $25,000 in state funds over a year to pay money he owed on gambling debts. Melton, who has pleaded guilty in the probe and awaits sentencing, said he routed legislative grant money through the Fire College.
Robert Nix, a former fire college deputy who was sentenced to 2 1/2 years on his guilty plea to theft and conspiracy, testified that Langston set up payments of more than $200,000 for him under the guise of consulting work for the Alabama Poison Center and the Access Group, a Jasper software company. Nix said he did no work for the money.
"We hope this prosecution will ensure future leaders at the fire college work for Alabama firefighters' benefit," Martin said.