Campaign sign incident investigated by city

Toledo, OH - The debate over Issue 1 is getting very heated. Alleged sign swipers are out there, stealing signs from supporter’s lawns.

Issue 1 is not a new tax, but the passage of it would allow $3.9 million to be reallocated to police and fire from the city’s 0.75-percent (tree-quarters percent) income tax.

A laid off Toledo police officer FOX Toledo News decided not to identify nearly became the latest victim of these sign stealers, but he says he caught one in the act.

He said on Thursday night at 11:30 a person who he describes as wearing all black came on to his lawn and grabbed his "Issue 1" sign. Then a day later that alleged sign swiper offered him a job with the city.

The officer says he approached the woman and she said she was taking the sign because it was impeding pedestrians' right of way. The sign was in the middle of the officer’s lawn, several feet from the street. That's when that policeman threatened to call 911 and identified himself.

“I told her that I was a laid off Toledo police officer and she called me a liar and I asked who she was and she said my neighbor."

The next day that neighbor came back and identified herself as Sue Frederick, Acting Commissioner of Streets, Bridges, and Harbor for the City of Toledo. Frederick was the woman amid the controversial parking ticket story in the national and international deadlines back in June.

Frederick allegedly proceeded to offer the laid off officer a job in her division.

FOX Toledo did find out that Frederick lives in the same neighborhood as the officer, right across the street from him.

Frederick did not return FOX Toledo’s call, but the City of Toledo did. Mayor Carty Finkbeiner and Chief of Staff Bob Reinbolt were not aware of this situation until FOX Toledo contacted them Monday afternoon.

City officials said an investigation into this incident and it will take a couple of days to complete. If these allegations are true, disciplinary action will be taken against the responsible party.