Was Trumbull swindled by a criminal genius or bumbler?

Tony Delmont is apparently the most ingenious and yet most inept criminal mastermind in Trumbull County history.
On the one hand, Delmont, who was the county's maintenance director, managed to funnel $400,000 in public money to a handful of accomplices who sold the county overpriced cleaning supplies -- and sometimes even empty containers -- for years.
He did this under the noses of three county commissioners who were in charge of the overall budget, the purchasing director (who was later promoted by the commissioners to county administrator), the sheriff, the auditor, the prosecutor -- none of whom had a clue that Delmont's criminal enterprise was stealing the county blind.
And what was the mastermind's take in this well planned and executed scam? About $60,000. He was doing most of the work, taking the greatest risk, and all he got was a measly 15 percent.
A criminal genius in setting up the scam; a buffoon in splitting the take. Go figure.
Not with a bang, but a whimper
The probe into the Trumbull County purchasing scandal that was uncovered by two Vindicator reporters four years ago is now officially over.
Victor Vigluicci, the Portage County prosecutor who oversaw part of the investigation, held a press conference in Ravenna at which he said that there was insufficient credible evidence to charge any elected official or any county employee above Delmont with anything.
Delmont and his confederates got $400,000 (or more) while the county spent $400,000 on an investigation, and here's the scorecard:
UDelmont, 50, was found guilty on seven counts of bribery, theft in office and money laundering between 1999 and 2002 and, after a delay for medical treatment, has finally begun serving a three-year prison sentence.
UDaniel A. Donofrio III, 41, of Brookfield, is serving a six-month sentence in the Trumbull County Jail and faces two years probation on two misdemeanor theft charges for swindling the county out of $12,000. He probably would have avoided doing any jail time if a polygraph test hadn't shown that he wasn't telling the truth when he was asked if he falsified claims, bribed anyone or paid any kickbacks.
UBarry Jacobson, 37, of Chagrin Falls served 30 days in the Geauga County Jail for selling the county about $200,000 in overpriced products.
UBarry Bonchek, 63, of Aurora, a salesman for a chemical and maintenance products company in Cleveland, pleaded guilty in August 2004 to two misdemeanor counts of bribery and awaits sentencing.
UDennis Pirko, 57, a former heating and air-conditioning repairman who admitted overbilling the county about $3,500 and paying $5,900 in bribes to Delmont, has pleaded guilty to 13 charges. He awaits sentencing and could get probation or more prison time than Delmont -- as much as 10 years -- on five felonies and eight misdemeanors.
UTerry Maiorana and Karen Delmont received probation.
Excuse us if we are underwhelmed.
Vigluicci and Trumbull County Prosecutor Dennis Watkins say they were hamstrung by state law in pursuing criminal charges against commissioners Joseph Angelo and Michael O'Brien for campaign fund irregularities involving $7,805 for Angelo and $1,875 for O'Brien.
They're right, the law probably should be changed to give criminal prosecutors, not the state elections commission, first crack at officials suspected of wrongdoing.
But even if criminal charges had been pursued on those relatively insignificant amounts, the scales of justice in the great Trumbull County corruption probe would have remained mightily unbalanced.