FBI sending more agents to Muncie
MUNCIE — More FBI agents have been added to the probe of alleged wrongdoing in Muncie city government.
Although the FBI will not confirm or deny that an investigation is underway, Mayor Dennis Tyler and other city officials have pledged cooperation in the probe, which has been ongoing for weeks and touches on a wide array of topics.
And now The Star Press has learned that the probe has widened or deepened, with more FBI agents scheduled to be assigned to the case in the past week or so.
City officials are aware of the increased FBI investigative presence. Tyler has declined to comment to The Star Press in recent weeks, citing the FBI investigation as well as a federal court lawsuit filed by a local contractor.
FBI investigating Muncie city government
The scope of the investigation is unknown. Based on public records subpoenaed from the city of Muncie, early indications were that the FBI was looking at contracts for work performed for the city, including demolitions and other work done by Craig Nichols, the city building commissioner appointed by Tyler after taking office in 2012.
How long the FBI has been investigating city government in Muncie is not known. Some officials have said an investigation has been ongoing for months, but federal investigators subpoenaed city records and interviewed city employees beginning just before and just after the May primary election.
FBI probe ongoing; Muncie City Hall nerves frayed
But it's unclear if the parameters of the investigation have changed, especially with the addition of more FBI agents.
As local officials and members of the public await an outcome — which could come in weeks, months or never, since the FBI has conducted investigations into Muncie government before, most notably in the 1990s, which did not result in criminal charges — nerves are on edge.
Rumors circulated among local officials on Friday that a Muncie business had been raided and that 24 criminal indictments had been handed down.
But a spokesman for the U.S Attorney's office in Indianapolis, where federal indictments would originate, said no indictments had been issued and no Muncie activity by federal agents had been conducted on Friday.
The spokesman told The Star Press on Monday that there had been no change in the status of the case, which the U.S Attorney's office could neither confirm nor deny.
Contact Keith Roysdon at 765-213-5828 and follow him on Facebook and Twitter.