Ex-Augusta Twp. Official Sentenced for Using Property Taxes to Pay Personal Bills

LANSING – (RealEstateRama) — Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette today announced that former Augusta Township Deputy Treasurer Brendan Humeniak has been sentenced to 18 months probation, and ordered to pay over $8,900.00 in restitution to the Township, after pleading guilty as charged to three counts of Embezzlement by a Public Official.

Humeniak was also given a 30 day jail sentence that is suspended until the end of his probation. The jail sentence will be waived if the following is completed, in addition to his restitution payment:

100 hours of community service;
Completion of the Thinking Matters program;
Cannot hold a job in accounting or a related field;
Payment of court and state fees totaling over $1,400.
“Public Servants must be held to a high standard,” said Schuette. “Today’s sentencing provides a small step forward in repairing the trust lost by residents who were victimized by this crime.”

Humeniak was sentenced February 22, 2016 in front of Judge David S. Swartz in Washtenaw County Circuit Court in Ann Arbor. The Judge sentenced him under the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act because he was under 21 years of age when he committed the crimes.

Case Background

A joint Michigan State Police and Department of Attorney General investigation into Augusta Township record keeping began after local residents received delinquency notices on property taxes they had already paid.

Humeniak was charged after the investigation showed that he stole cash deposits intended for those property taxes and instead used the funds to pay his personal bills.

Contact: Andrea Bitely 517-373-8060