The former Trussville fire chief took four vehicles that belonged to the city and used them for personal gain, a state trooper testified Thursday.
Russell Ledbetter, 58, faced a preliminary hearing in Jefferson County District Court Judge William Bell Jr.'s courtroom Thursday morning. He's facing six charges-- two counts of first-degree theft, and four counts of ethics violations for using property for personal gain. Following the hearing, the judge bound the case over to a grand jury for possible indictment.
Det. Brendan Fuller with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency testified during the hearing. He said the charges stem from incidents involving four vehicles, and ALEA was first alerted to the case after Trussville Mayor Buddy Choat wrote to the agency last year, asking for officials to investigate.
Trussville has both a paid, full-time fire department and a volunteer department. Ledbetter served as fire chief beginning in 1998 until he was placed on leave in 2016.
The first vehicle Fuller described was a 2008 Ford Crown Victoria. The Trussville Volunteer Fire Department purchased the car in 2014 for approximately $3,000. In 2016, Ledbetter registered the car in his name and purchased the title for $10, Fuller said. Last year, Ledbetter sold the car to another fire department for $1,000, the detective said. One theft and one ethics charge stemmed from that incident.
The second car Fuller testified about was a 1968 AMG military vehicle. Fuller said he didn't know when the department obtained the car, but that Ledbetter registered the car to himself in 2014 and "simply took" it. The car was surrendered to investigators after Fuller set a day all department property to be turned into authorities, and Fuller said Ledbetter admitted the vehicle was his. One theft and one ethics charge comes from the AMG.
Fuller also described a 1952 carry-all Jeep military vehicle. The Jeep was also registered under Ledbetter's name in 2014. According to Fuller, the Jeep was restored and extensively worked on at the volunteer fire department and by firefighters, using city tools and labor. Following its restoration, the Jeep was stored at another firefighter's home. One ethics charge stems from the Jeep.
The AMG and the Jeep both were registered with vintage tags, Fuller said, which the state does not maintain records for.
The last vehicle Fuller described was a 2015 travel trailer. That trailer was purchased by the fire department or the volunteer fire department from a state surplus auction for approximately $1,500 in 2007. One year later, Fuller said Ledbetter registered the trailer in his name and has continued to keep a current registration on it. One ethics charge stems from the trailer.
Fuller said the state is also investigating claims Ledbetter sold about 20 other trailers bought by the department to people he knew, and profited from the sale.
Ledbetter will remain free on bonds totaling $90,0000. He is represented by Bill Clark.
Clark questioned Fuller about whether the city of Trussville every used any of the vehicles for any city or military event. Fuller responded he was not aware of any.
Clark argued during the closing that there was no evidence he stole any of the vehicles or trail and no evidence he violated ethics laws in any way.
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