The property room supervisor of the Hamilton County Sheriff's Department - who is also a well-known nightclub singer in the Cincinnati area - has been arrested for removing property, along with his wife and his wife's son.
Arrested and charged with tampering with evidence were Michael Esposito, known as a performer as Mickey Esposito; his wife, Allison Esposito of Loveland, and her son, Adam Fintak of Norwood.
The Hamilton County Sheriff's Department did not say what evidence was removed from the property room at 11021 Hamilton Ave. in Colerain Township, but agents with the Regional Narcotics Unit executed the searches and made the arrests.
"None of the property involved would negatively impact the ability to prosecute any open cases,'' a press release from the sheriff's department said. The investigation is ongoing and additional charges are pending, according to the release.
Michael Esposito has been a popular singer for decades in various nightclubs in the Cincinnati area; and he has a website for his "Live Vegas Show."
Until 1990, Esposito was the chief deputy for the then-county auditor, Joseph DeCourcy Jr., who was convicted for appraising the value of the property of his friends at at rates lower than the actual value, thus saving them money in taxes.
Esposito was charged with 220 misdemeanor counts in the DeCourcy scandal. He was acquitted on 20 of the charges. Prosecutors decided not to pursue the rest of the charges.
He joined the sheriff's department as a deputy in 2001, under then-sheriff Simon Leis. But he was not a sworn peace officer; and was given the job of running the property room in 2002.
"This was brought to my attention and I can tell you this will not be tolerated on my watch,'' Sheriff Jim Neil said in a press release. "I appreciate the hard work of our Regional Narcotics Unit, along with the cooperation of the Hamilton County prosecutor's office which culminated in the outcome of these arrests."
