County Operations Director Under Investigation
By Doug La Rocque
According to an article in Sunday’s Times Union newspaper, Rensselaer County Operations Director Rich Crist is under investigation by both the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and the NYS Attorney General’s Office. According to the article, “interviews with multiple people familiar with the investigation, which has been ongoing for months, indicate law enforcement officials have been gathering records and conducting interviews on a range of matters related to Crist, including his work with various political campaigns.”
Rensselaer County has placed Mr. Crist on administrative leave without pay. The County issued the following statement from County Attorney Carl Kempf III: “Rensselaer County has placed Richard Crist on administrative leave without pay.”
“In accordance with County protocol and at the direction of legal counsel, the County is unable to comment further at this time with respect to the personnel matter. With that said, and without commenting on the merits of the reported investigation, everyone, including Mr. Crist, is entitled to the presumption of innocence. To ensure continued County services and operations without impact, duties have been re-assigned to current county staff members. Based on available information, the reported investigation is unrelated to county government operations and there is no allegation of any wrongdoing by any other county employee or official.”
Through his attorney, Mr. Crist said he has no comment on the investigation at this time.