Home seized

Allegations of embezzlement spur police to force family out

By JON MOFFETT

Vindicator Staff Writer

Canfield Home Seized

Video

CANFIELD — A sign in the neatly manicured front lawn of 5305 Revere Road in Canfield Township says the Austintown Police Department seized the home under court order, and warns: “Trespassers will be arrested.”

Austintown police arrived Friday morning to seize the property and possessions of Scott Adair, 48, as the investigation continues into an alleged embezzlement scheme.

According to a filing Friday in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court by the prosecutor’s office, more than $1 million was embezzled from Adair’s former employer, Southwind Transportation Inc., Mahoning Avenue, Austintown.

Austintown Detective Kathy Dina said the police department has been investigating the allegations for about six weeks. Dina said the alleged embezzlement had taken place since 2000, and possibly earlier.

The department obtained a search warrant from the court at 9 a.m. and went to the home. Neither Adair nor his wife, Linda, were there when police arrived but were called from work.

Dina said the department had to seize the house and possessions because it’s believed they may have been purchased with some of the corporate funds. The company has since gone out of business.

The company “was getting lower and lower funds and they knew something was up,” Dina said.

Adair was a partner and was fired in October 2007, the court document said.

His business partner, Ric Barringer, filed a lawsuit against Adair in March. Charges included misappropriation of corporate assets to personal use, breach of contract, fraud and negligence.

Barringer later Friday commended authorities for taking action.

“The Austintown Police Department, Detective Dina and the prosecutor’s office have been absolutely fantastic,” Barringer said. He said about 30 workers lost their jobs at the transportation company. He added that small vendors that dealt with the company also suffered.

Barringer said he was in a state of shock when he first learned of the alleged embezzlement. “When you are victimized, it’s a terrible feeling,” he said. “It’s a real heartbreaker to think about it.”

Adair and his family, including two daughters, were instructed to leave the property. They were permitted to bring “adequate and sufficient clothing, personal effects and luggage for alternative living,” the court document said.

Atty. John Shultz is representing Adair. “I have been consulted by Mr. Adair, and at this juncture, I cannot say anything further until I’ve had an ample opportunity to review the status of the allegations,” he said.

Adair, who has not been formally charged and was not arrested, had no comment as he loaded luggage into the back of his tan Chevrolet Tahoe.

Asked if she had a comment, Linda Adair responded: “Are you kidding me?”

Linda Adair is also the subject of the investigation as being “complicit” and acting as a “phantom employee” of the company, the documentation said. It said she received “thousands of dollars in non-payroll checks, health benefits, spousal support, vacations and the use of assets.”

According to the documentation, the “real estate, vehicles, bank accounts, household good and furnishings, lawn and garden equipment, wine, investment accounts, firearms, sports tickets and personal seat licenses and some apparel” were to be forfeited to police.

The Mahoning County Sheriff’s Department assisted the Austintown police. The Austintown Road Department unloaded a large safe from the home and took it to the police station.

“This is just the beginning,” Dina said. The family took clothing and pets — three dogs and three carriers of cats — from the home. Police then had the deadbolt on the front door changed and added bars to other entryways.

The Adair family can petition the court in 10 days to return to the home.

The two-story home sits in an upscale development with homes of similar size and value. Neighbors said they were surprised to hear of the allegations but wouldn’t give their names for comment.

Dina said evicting a family in any situation is difficult but is necessary in such cases.

“I don’t want to ever do this again,” she said. “Once is enough for me.”

jmoffett@vindy.com