Sullivan County District Attorney Barry Staubus tells the Kingsport Times-News that he asked the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation three months ago to look into why some people did not receive requested refunds for tickets purchased in advance of a GOP forum and dinner planned for Oct. 15, 2011, in Kingsport.
On Wednesday, TBI spokeswoman Kristin Helm advised the investigation is still ongoing. She said the probe involves “missing money” associated with the canceled event and declined to provide further details.
“I had some complaints by some citizens that didn’t receive their money, and so I’ve asked the TBI to do an investigation,” Staubus said Wednesday.
“It’s still under investigation. It’s not complete, and so I don’t want to make any more comments about the nature of it than that. I did make a request to look into the circumstances of that forum.”
Staubus said initially three citizens came forward, and then he received “numerous” phone calls from other Sullivan County residents, as well as a few others in the Davidson County area. All the calls involved complaints that refund requests — some made prior to the event’s cancellation — were not honored, he said.