Four men have been charged in connection with embezzling and misappropriating millions of dollars intended for a possible solar farm in City of Industry, L.A. County District Attorney George Gascón's office announced Friday.
William Barkett, 63; Anthony Bouza, 60; Paul Jule Philips, 79 and Frank Hill, 67, collectively face 12 felony counts. Barkett faces one count each of misappropriation of public funds, embezzlement, money laundering and grand theft; Bouza faces eight counts of having a financial interest in a contract or purchase made in an official capacity and one count of misappropriation of public funds; Philips faces one count of misappropriation of public funds and Hill faces two counts of having a financial interest in a contract or purchase made in an official capacity.
A statement from Gascón's office alleged that between 2016 and 2018, the City of Industry entered into a land-lease agreement with San Gabriel Valley Water and Power to study whether a solar farm might be buildable in the region. The city agreed to advance certain funds to the project to be repaid if construction commenced.
Philips, the former city manager, and Bouza, an attorney hired by the city and a private contractor who allegedly helped draft the land-lease agreement, administered those funds.
Over the course of the two-year period, Gascón's office alleged that around $20 million in public funds were redirected to a bank account controlled by Barkett, who owned San Gabriel Valley Water and Power. Barkett was accused of spending about $8.3 million of those funds on personal expenses, and allegedly falsified invoices to that effect.
Bouza, along with Hill, another private contractor hired by the city and a former California state assemblymember representing Whittier, are alleged to have had a major conflict of interest in the matter, as they prosecutors said they had hands in drafting the relevant agreements and inappropriately influenced contracts with the city.
The case remains open under the D.A.'s Bureau of Investigation. Philips is the only suspect to have made a court appearance thus far. His arraignment has been postponed to Sept. 10. The other three are scheduled for arraignment on Sept. 7.