Ohio can freeze ex-top utility regulator’s $8 million in assets, high court says
By JULIE CARR SMYTH
Associated Press
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Ohio Supreme Court has reinstated a judge’s order allowing the state to freeze $8 million in personal assets belonging to a former top Ohio utility regulator. It’s the latest development in a yearslong fight over property belonging to Sam Randazzo, a one-time chair of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. Randazzo was charged with 11 counts last month for his alleged role in a $60 million Statehouse bribery scheme. He has pleaded not guilty. Justices ruled Tuesday that the appellate court erred on a technicality when it unfroze Randazzo’s property in 2022 and reinstated the trial court decision.