Oakhill judge forces confidential FBI informant to testify in public today

CLEVELAND

Youngstown political consultant Harry Strabala admitted he secretly recorded ex-Mahoning County Auditor Michael V. Sciortino. And based on his testimony and that of an FBI agent at a hearing, he is the main confidential witness in the Oakhill Renaissance Place criminal-corruption case.

Strabala’s surprising testimony came at the end of a nearly five-hour hearing Friday regarding the number of hours of secretly recorded tapes in the case.

While on the witness stand, FBI Special Agent Wallace Sines explained what the case’s main confidential witness did for a decade, including sometimes wearing two recording devices to tape people law-enforcement officials believed were involved in corruption. Sines also said the confidential source stopped taping Sciortino at the request of the FBI after Sciortino hired an attorney.

Sines’ description during testimony was followed by a private discussion among lawyers on both sides.

Then Strabala testified for a few minutes. His testimony matched that of Sines’ description of the main secret informant.

Strabala said he talked daily with Sciortino, one of the three Oakhill defendants, and met with him frequently, recording the former auditor at the request of the FBI.

Prosecutors had tried to shield Strabala’s identity and not have him testify at Friday’s hearing. If their main confidential informant had to testify, prosecutors wanted it to be done behind closed doors to protect his identity as they contend he had been threatened a few times.

But Judge Janet R. Burnside of Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, who is overseeing the case, ruled that Strabala had to testify in public.

Read more of the surprising developments in this ongoing case in Saturday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.