Montgomery County Commissioner James Matthews arrested
NewsWorks reporter Elizabeth Fiedler reports Montgomery County Commissioner James Matthews has been arrested for Perjury and False Swearing.
Update, 11:00:
According to a statement issued by Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman, the arrest comes as the result of an 18 month grand jury investigation.
The county says the Grand Jury investigation was launched after a series of newspaper stories from investigative reporters surrounding the county’s board of commissioners and civilian complaints into the commissioner’s activities.
The investigation, which began in March 2010, included extensive evidence and testimony from numerous witnesses, according to Montgomery County.
Earlier this morning, The Times Herald said an investigation had been ongoing since it uncovered no-bid contracts being handed out to contributors to the commissioner’s campaign for re-election.
Matthews also was involved in an investigation into allegations of Sunshine Law violations, along with fellow county commissioner Joe Hoeffel, according to the report.
The Times Herald, quoting a source, says a grand jury investigation into the allegations led to a perjury charge.
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