Former campaign manager of Shays pleads not guilty to embezzlement

Former Rep. Chris Shays’ (D-Conn.) campaign manager pleaded not guilty Friday to embezzling an estimated $250,000 from the re-election committee’s coffers.

Michael Sohn, who had worked for Shays for nearly six years, was arrested earlier Friday and accused of 12 counts of stealing campaign funds from 2005 to 2008, the year Shays narrowly lost his House seat to Democrat Jim Himes.

The indictment accused Sohn of writing himself checks and using the campaign debit card for unauthorized purchases and of making false statements to investigators. A judge released him on $100,000 bail and advised him to undergo mental health treatment.

Prosecutors also accused Sohn, 34, of failing to file federal income tax returns from 2005 to 2007, and failing to report $88,000 in income on his 2008 tax return.

Shays, a 21-year veteran of the House and champion of campaign finance reform, turned the matter over to federal investigators when he discovered inconsistencies in the campaign’s financial reports.

On Tuesday, Chief Administrative Officer Dan Beard notified House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) by letter to say that he had been subpoenaed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut "in connection with a criminal matter now pending in the same court."

A spokesman for Beard declined to comment on the specifics of the matter he was involved in but said that such a subpoena was normal for matters dealing with House records.

"It is routine for the CAO to be named in a subpoena [for cases involving members or staff of the House]," said Jeff Ventura.

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