McKee Refused to Be Interviewed in Corruption Probe; In the Past, Other Governors Were Interviewed
GoLocalProv New Team and News Editor Kate Nagle
McKee Refused to Be Interviewed in Corruption Probe; In the Past, Other Governors Were Interviewed
On Thursday, GoLocal News Editor Kate Nagle asked McKee why he refused to be interviewed.
“I don't trust the Attorney General that he asked for that...no, I didn't have an obligation to do it. I knew that they were going to come up empty and when you look at this issue and the constant statements that the Attorney General's made recently," said McKee during a press conference in which he went on the attack against Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha, alleging Neronha's motivations were political.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTBut McKee’s refusal to testify in the probe is in stark contrast to how other high-level elected officials have responded in the recent past.
McKee had been investigated over the past three years for directing a $5.1 million contract to a politically connected company created just one day before the contract went out.
Afonso, who also refused to be interviewed as part of the ILO probe, was a central figure in the Collapse of 38 Studios.
Afonso, then a lawyer for the law firm Moses, Afonso Ryan, was forced to pay millions.
Afonso and his firm settled and paid the state of Rhode Island $4.37 million.
Carcieri, Chafee and Raimondo All Testified in 38 Studios.
While McKee calls Neronha untrustworthy, former Rhode Island Governor Don Carcieri was interviewed by the Rhode Island State Police after the collapse of 38 Studios, the gaming company that the State of Rhode Island had poured $75 million into before it collapsed, leaving Rhode Island taxpayers on the hook.
In his interview with Detective Trooper Buonaiuto, Carcieri said that there was tremendous due diligence by the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation - the predecessor to Commerce RI.
"These were not public, these were private meetings with the EDC staff, with some of the people from 38 Studios' side, their management team, just really going through this thing in - in great detail. And that's why I was always kind of upset that the notion that somehow this just happened quickly and there wasn't a lot of due diligence. No, a lot of work went into this — on the Board's part...and on the EDC's team part. So it was over several months, and I think the final vote was sometime in the summer, if I recall, of 2010," said Carcieri, who at the time of the RISP interview had left office and was succeeded by Governor Lincoln Chafee.
Chafee was deposed as part of the civil case led by attorney Max Wistow.
Chafee opposed the funding of 38 Studios as a candidate for Governor in 2010. As Governor, he had to clean up the financial mess created by the failure of the gaming company studio created by former Boston Red Sox great Curt Schilling. Questions have been raised about Chafee's stewardship of the Economic Development Corporation [now, RI Commerce Corporation] while 38 Studios was operational and spending $75 million of taxpayers' funds.
A GoLocal review found that the RI Economic Development Corporation met more than 60 times with Chafee serving as the chairman and failed to have 38 Studios on the agenda for the Corporation's meetings.
READ THE TRANSCRIPT OF CHAFEE HERE
In addition, then-General Treasurer Gina Raimondo was deposed as part of the 38 Studios probe. Her testimony is 112 pages.
READ RAIMONDO'S TESTIMONY HERE
Ironically, GoLocal sued Governor Raimondo for the release of the Rhode Island State Police interviews. After more than six months of legal battling, she released them.
When Pressed, McKee Said Neronha's Investigation Was Politically Corrupt
When pressed by Nagle on the fact that other governors were interviewed, McKee doubled down on his allegations that Neronha was not acting as Attorney General but was motivated by politics.
Watch that exchange below.