Arizona agents make raid on Colorado City school offices Officers seek to ensure preservation of records amid finance investigation

By Patrice St. Germain patrices@thespectrum.com

Jerel Harris/ The Spectrum Arizona Attorney General Special Investigations Agent Supervisor John Malkiewicz, left, watches as law enforcement officers search a Colorado City School District vehicle Tuesday. Officials loaded a U-Haul truck and several vans with confiscated school items.   Jerel Harris/ The Spectrum Law enforcement officials working in conjunction with the office of the attorney general for the state of Arizona confiscate files, safe boxes, computers, papers and beer from Colorado Unified City School District building No. 14 and school vehicles located at 300 N. Cottonwood Street in Colorado City on Tuesday. COLORADO CITY - During a nine-hour search at the Colorado City Unified School District administration office Tuesday, agents from the Arizona Attorney General's Office packed up computers, file boxes and even beer cans confiscated from the office and district vehicles. Curious bystanders looked on as the agents carried items from the school and cars. The community is dominated by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which teaches polygamy as part of its doctrine. Arizona Highway Patrol troopers and members of the Mohave County Sheriff's Office provided security while the confiscated materials were placed in a 28-foot U-Haul truck. School superintendent Alvin Barlow, school district business manager Jeffrey Jessop and assistant business manager Oliver Barlow looked on while the activity took place. According to a press release, Attorney General Terry Goddard said his office has been investigating reports of possible financial mismanagement at the school for the past two years. "We executed the search warrant today in an effort to be sure the records are not at risk of being destroyed, removed or altered if the district is placed in receivership and to help determine if any wrongdoing has occurred," Goddard said. The search warrant and its related documents have been sealed by the Superior Court and remain confidential. All the items seized during the execution of the search warrant were taken to Flagstaff for processing. According to the press release, Goddard's office is preparing a petition to present to the State Board of Education to put the school district in receivership. The Arizona Legislature recently passed a law allowing the board to place school districts in receivership if they are being financially mismanaged. The new law will take effect Aug. 12. Mohave County School District Superintendent Mike File said he actually met with teachers on the last day of school Thursday. File said the meeting, which included Alvin Barlow, Jessop and Oliver Barlow was tenuous at times. "I purposely went up at the request of the teachers and wanted them to see the truth," File said. "What I was seeing was blatant disregard and their behavior (Alvin Barlow, Jeffrey Jessop and Oliver Barlow) and their demeanor to those people, the teachers and children was deplorable." File said he left the meeting and contacted the Attorney General's Office on Friday. File was pleased that the criminal search warrant was served so quickly and hopes to be given receivership of the school. "If I am, the plan I have is the immediate termination of the administration if they are not prosecuted by then," File said. File said the district, which has a huge amount of staff-per-student ratio, has had problems with its budget for the past five years. During the last school year, staff members were unable to cash paychecks for three pay periods until the steps were taken to cover those checks. Attempts to reach school board chairman F. Lee Bistline, Alvin Barlow, Oliver Barlow and Jeffrey Jessop were unsuccessful Tuesday evening.

TheSpectrum.com Originally published May 25, 2005

Back

For more information email: