The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Agreement to be made formal April 18
A deal has been struck between the Seventh Judicial District Attorney’s office and former Crested Butte Rotary Club treasurer Richard Bond, but details are being kept under wraps until the next court hearing, scheduled for the morning of Wednesday, April 18. Signed papers of the agreement were presented to Gunnison District Court Judge Steven Patrick on Thursday, April 5. Judge Patrick will evaluate the agreement and determine its suitability.
Bond, the former executive director of the Crested Butte-Mt. Crested Butte Chamber of Commerce and treasurer for several local non-profit organizations, is accused of stealing more than $40,000 from the Crested Butte Rotary Club over several years.
Bond appeared before Judge Patrick on April 5 and said he had willingly signed the agreement documents. On April 18, Bond will formally enter a plea in the case and then be sentenced at that time.
Deputy District Attorney Keith Mandelski said that details were not being released to the public until the agreement was formally entered on April 18. Representatives of the Rotary Club will also look over the proposal and weigh in on the proposed deal.
The judge made it clear that the agreement was not yet signed, sealed and done. “This won’t be binding until the 18th,” he told Bond. “The court will independently evaluate the proposed agreement and determine the appropriateness of the deal. On the 18th, I will ask you a series of questions to make sure that you thoroughly understand the agreement and understand the plea.”
Bond said he understood the procedure.
Bond is looking at five class-4 felony counts of theft between $1,000 and $20,000 after allegedly taking more than $40,000 from the Rotary Club account in a series of transactions starting in November 2008. The investigation broke out the transactions in six-month segments, with the last allegedly occurring between May 14, 2011 and August 31, 2011.
Bond also faces one misdemeanor count of theft under $500.
