Guilty verdict against Noe isn't the end of 'coingate'

Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro, a Republican, is deserving of praise for moving quickly to renew a civil lawsuit against Republican political insider Tom Noe, who was convicted this week of stealing from a state investment in rare coins.
And Petro's soon-to-be successor, Marc Dann, a Democrat, is to be applauded for promising that the pay-to-play culture in state government that was nurtured by Republicans, who have controlled state government for the past 16 years, will be aggressively attacked. With Democrats in control of all but one of the administrative offices, including governor, Dann will be watched closely to see whether his promise matches his actions.
The state senator from Liberty Township says Noe's conviction does not close the book on "coingate," which is what the investment scandal has been dubbed. Noe is a rare coin dealer from Toledo who has been a major fund-raiser for and campaign contributor to national and state Republican officeholders and candidates.
A jury found him guilty of stealing at least 2 million from the 50 million in Ohio Bureau of Worker's Compensation money that was entrusted to him for investment in rare coins and other collectibles.
He got the investment contract because of his political connections. During the trial, Noe's lawyers insisted that state officials were well aware of what he was doing and that the contract gave him the freedom to use the money as he saw fit.
Republicans in high places
It is this claim that Dann should explore when he takes office in January. Like the senator, we find it hard to believe that a scam of this magnitude was not known to more than just a couple of state officials. Indeed, with his personal and political connections with Republicans in high places, it is inconceivable that his contract with the BWC was not common knowledge.
Petro's civil lawsuit, which seeks to get back at least 4 million that the attorney general charges Noe took from the coin investment for personal use, may be the ideal avenue for uncovering what remains covered in this scandal.
Petro has accused Noe of creating a financial ruse in which he disguised portions of the 50 million investment in rare coins as profits on that investments.
With the guilty verdict in the criminal trial, Noe has at least a 10-year prison sentence hanging over his head. And while some may think that 10 years is not enough time, prosecutors should condition further leniency on Noe's naming names with regard to who was in on the scam.
And Dann should aggressively pursue anyone in state government who was involved in the pay-to-play scheme that resulted in coingate.
The state senator ran on a platform of cleaning up state government and ending the practice of giving contracts to friends and political allies. The voters of Ohio believed him. He must now deliver.