Custer County Commissioner faces ethical, criminal complaints for alleged forgery

Update: The 11th Judicial District Attorney's Office served a search warrant on United Business Bank requesting signature cards of all authorized users on the Custer County Account in question and found Canda is authorized to file stop payments and is an authorized signer on the account. The 11th Judicial District Attorney's Office said no criminal charges will be filed against Canda.

CUSTER COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- Custer County Commissioner Bill Canda is facing both ethical and criminal complaints from residents after trying to stop a severance check to a former county employee.

In August, the Custer County Commissioners voted to get rid of the county manager position. The manager at the time, Braden Wilson, was supposed to receive a severance check totaling more than $54,000 because of his termination.

However, Canda tried to stop the severance check from going through by going to the United Business Bank in Westcliffe to file a stop payment order. KRDO13 Investigates obtained the stop payment order which shows the account is held by Virigina Trujillo, the Custer County Treasurer. On the second page of the stop payment order, Canda crosses out Trujillo’s name, puts his own, and then signs and dates the document.

Trujillo told KRDO13 Investigates Canda didn’t have the authority to stop a severance check to a former employee. During a commissioner meeting the following week, Custer County Commissioner Kevin Day said the check still went through because Canda isn’t authorized to stop it.

“You do not have the authority to stop payment on a check,” said Custer County Commissioner Kevin Day during the August commissioner meeting. “Sure I do,” responded Canda.

“Let me finish,” Day said. “The only ones in the county that have authority to stop payment on a check is the Treasurer and the Assistant Treasurer, so that check has been cut.”

Day said a stop payment order has to be approved by the board of county commissioners.

“If there were to be a stop payment on that check, I would say it would have taken an action of the board to do that and we would have needed to direct the Treasurer's office to stop payment on that,” Day said.

In September, Custer County resident Jordan Hedberg filed a criminal complaint with the Custer County Sheriff, who responded and said an outside investigation would have to take place since the sheriff reports to the county commissioners.

“[Canda] used the power of his office to attempt to harm a former employee when he had no authority or right to interfere with the employee contract that Braden Wilson had with the Custer County Government,” the criminal complaint states. “This is a clear crime of malicious abuse of public office and willingness to tell lies and fraudulently alter bank documents to try and punish a former employee.”

Hedberg then sent the complaint to the 11th Judicial District Attorney’s Office accusing Canda of forgery and abuse of power.

“Are we going to say that an elected official, just because they're powerful, doesn't play by the same rules as the rest of ordinary citizens? The only way that that argument can be addressed is through an investigation,” Hedberg said.

DA Linda Stanley responded to his request for an investigation saying, “We were notified of your request for investigation. In fact, I met with two of my investigators regarding this investigation that same day. Unfortunately, they were finishing up on a prior Custer investigation before getting to yours when the Penrose Mortuary incident occurred. Since that time, they have been quite busy with that investigation as I’m sure you can understand. We aren’t ignoring your request. However, we do have to prioritize requests appropriately and as soon as we are able to have an investigator free, they will contact you.”

Hedberg said he hasn’t heard from Stanley’s office and is concerned the investigation has fallen to the wayside.

“She's got a bunch of cases that she hasn't been able to do,” Hedberg said. “So even if I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt, she's completely overwhelmed. That's pushed any type of an investigation that she promised would happen back to the point that it's becoming forgotten.”

KRDO13 Investigates reached out to both the Custer County Sheriff’s Office and the 11th Judicial District Attorney Linda Stanley but we never heard back.

Several other Custer County residents, including John Van Doren, filed ethics complaints with the state’s Independent Ethics Commission, alleging Canda used his government position to violate state and local laws. However, that ethics complaint was dismissed by the Independent Ethics Commission on Monday because it didn’t fall within its jurisdiction, Van Doren said.

Van Doren said he plans to file another complaint in the next week that aligns with the Independent Ethics Commission, including Canda violating the Sunshine Law.

KRDO13 Investigates reached out to Canda about these allegations and complaints but we never heard back.