TOLEDO, Ohio — Tom Noe was convicted in 2006 of skimming about $13.7 million from the $50 million rare-coin investment fund he managed for the state of Ohio.
The 65-year-old has served nearly two-thirds of his 18-year sentence.
On April 17, Gov. Mike DeWine announced that he would commute Noe's sentence as part of the effort to slow the spread of coronavirus through state prisons. He was among a list of prisoners being considered for release due to age or pre-existing conditions that could be exacerbated by COVID-19.
"We're never going to get restitution with him sitting in prison. That was one of the considerations. He's served 13.5 years. His prison record is spotless. He'll be supervised by parole authorities and one of the conditions is he'll have to start making restitution," DeWine said.
Lucas County Prosecutor Jeff Lingo, who was part of the prosecution team during Noe's trial, said Monday that there are still unanswered questions.
"We still have questions as to where the money went. Millions of dollars are unaccounted for and of which would've gone to injured workers. It's something we would've liked an answer to," he said. "Secondly, it also would've been nice if the governor, as a former prosecutor himself, or someone from the governor's office called and told us that Mr. Noe was going to be released. The governor can grant clemency without our permission and we understand that."
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Another question is how Noe plans to repay restitution and costs.
The state scandal, often referred to as “Coingate,” dealt with mismanagement of the rare coin investment fund that Noe ran with partner Tim LaPointe. In addition to the 27-month sentence, Noe was ordered to pay the nearly $3 million cost of the prosecution, restitution to the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC) for the missing $13.7 million, and a $139,000 fine.
"He is going to do the best he can on the restitution and cost front but I can assure there is no pile of money in his back yard of some secret account in the Caymans or Switzerland," Rick Kerger, Noe's attorney, responded on Monday.
Kerger also said he hasn't spoken to Noe since the governor announced his commutation, but he understands that his client is doing well.
Jerry Anderson, Leading Edge host, and former WTOL 11 news anchor remembers Tom Noe's the Coingate scandal very well.
"I 'did news' in Toledo for over 40 years and this was the most publicized in the print medium, most publicized story of my entire career," he said.
Anderson said the case had all of the makings for a huge story, including a high-profile individual and months and months of investigation led by The Blade leading up to the trial.
"They uncover what they believe is wrongdoing and misappropriation of state funds through the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation. They think the finger of guilt is pointing at somebody from your own community, a very highly publicized, well-known political leader," Anderson said.
Noe, along with his then-wife Bernadette Restivo-Noe, served as chairpersons of the Lucas County Republican Party. Noe was also chairman of the 2004 Bush-Cheney election campaign in northwest Ohio.
Following the trial, there was a lot of political fallout. Anderson said the Republican Party statewide "took it on the chin."
"You had a former governor in the state of Ohio, Bob Taft, indicted and having to plead guilty albeit to a misdemeanor for accepting some gift from Mr. Noe and not disclosing it. Gov. DeWine was up for election in the U.S. Senate, following the trial and got beat by Sen. Sherrod Brown," Anderson said.
Kerger said that his client may not be released for possibly another week.
CONVICTION ON ILLEGAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS
Before starting the state sentence, Noe served two years in federal prison for a 2005 conviction on illegal campaign contributions to President George W. Bush's re-election campaign.
Noe, along with his then-wife Bernadette Restivo-Noe, served as chairpersons of the Lucas County Republican Party.
Noe was also chairman of the 2004 Bush-Cheney election campaign in Northwest Ohio.
He also was appointed to the Ohio Board of Regents and was chairman of the Ohio Turnpike Commission, appointed by Gov. Bob Taft.
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