Headlines 6 February 2025

Former Ontario water plant supervisor indicted in Richland County over falsified military leave letter

COLUMBUS — The Richland County Grand Jury has returned a three-count indictment against the former water department supervisor for the City of Ontario, who allegedly falsified a military leave request to cover days when he was actually serving a jail sentence for a probation violation.

David Whittaker faces felony counts of theft in office, tampering with records, and telecommunications fraud in Richland County Common Pleas Court.

The Auditor of State’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) received a complaint in August 2024 alleging Whittaker had submitted a falsified and fabricated Air National Guard letter requesting military leave from his water department job in July and August 2024.

An Air National Guard commander in Mansfield confirmed that the letter was fraudulent. Whittaker instead was serving a 30-day jail sentence during that time for a probation violation on an earlier arrest for operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

Whittaker is scheduled to be arraigned on Feb. 11 in Richland County Common Pleas Court.

Since 2019, the Special Investigations Unit has assisted in 130 convictions resulting in more than $10 million in restitution (see Map of SIU Convictions since January 2019). The team receives hundreds of tips of suspected fraud annually. Tips can be submitted anonymously online or via SIU’s fraud hotline at 866-FRAUD-OH (866-372-8364).

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