In response to a public records request by our Columbus Bureau, the Mandel administration on Friday released a two-page memo from Boyce’s legal director, Theresa Carter, to Mandel’s general counsel, Seth Metcalf.
On Jan. 11, 2011, Carter outlined for her successor the details of the FBI subpoena for records related to how the Boyce administration picked Boston-based State Street Bank to handle international assets for the state’s public pension systems and other large investment pools.
“Treasurer Boyce advised me to cooperate with the investigation,” Carter wrote to Metcalf. Authorities were also seeking state cell phone records for Boyce and deputy treasurer Amer Ahmad.
Ahmad pleaded not guilty this week to bribery, money laundering, wire fraud, conspiracy and other charges in U.S. District Court in Columbus.
The Daily News in May 2010 detailed how Ahmad’s friend, immigration attorney M. Noure Alo, was hired by State Street Bank as a lobbyist just two days before bids were due for the bank contract. Alo pleaded not guilty to conspiracy and wire fraud charges. A State Street Bank spokeswoman this week did not respond to questions about why Alo was selected.
The federal indictment of Alo and Ahmad did not include allegations related to the State Street Bank contract. Instead, the focus was on an alleged scheme where Ahmad lined up a high school classmate to make securities trades for the state and earn $3.2 million in commissions and then kickback $523,000 to Ahmad and his co-conspirators.
Boyce, a Democrat who now serves in the Ohio House, could not be immediately reached for comment.
Information from the Associated Press is included in this report.
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