CINCINNATI — Tyler Fehrman was back on the stand Monday after testifying previously in the federal corruption trial of Larry Householder and Matt Borges. The former Ohio House Speaker and former Ohio Republican Party chairman, respectively, are charged with racketeering conspiracy.
Fehrman had been a GOP operative hired by Advanced Micro Targeting, a firm that collects voter signatures. Among his responsibilities were to hire and manage petitioners who were gathering signatures for the HB 6 referendum, which would have blocked HB 6 from taking effect.
Fehrman testified earlier this month that he contacted authorities after he felt Borges pushed him to get insider information regarding the ballot initiative to overturn HB 6, the billion-dollar nuclear bailout plan at the center of the corruption allegations. Fehrman would become an FBI informant and wore a wire to record some of his conversations with Borges.
Monday, Fehrman again told jurors he felt Borges was aggressive in his pursuit for information about where petitioners were working and how many signatures they had gathered. In return, he said Borges suggested he could pay some of his debts. Considering Borges a friend, Fehrman said the conversation made him uneasy and upset.
Later, Borges’ attorney said Fehrman was the one who brought up his legal and financial issues, suggesting it was not his client who offered to pay for information. Prosecutors had said Borges gave Fehrman a check for $15,000.
Fehrman said Borges later told him not to tell anyone about their conversations, but by then, Fehrman was already working with the FBI.
Fehrman later testified that he and Borges talked about a court hearing regarding some of the harassment and aggressive behavior to fight the petition campaign. Fehrman said Borges advised him if anyone asked, to say nothing had happened and to avoid testifying testify in the case.
Fehrman is expected to be the government’s last witness before prosecutors rest their case and the defense will argue their case. The trial resumes Tuesday. Borges and Householder have both pleaded not guilty.
