CLEVELAND -- Former Cuyahoga County Auditor Frank Russo is back in federal custody and left the Cuyahoga County Jail about 8:30 a.m. today, Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Spokesman John O'Brien confirmed to Channel 3.
Former Cuyahoga County Commissionr Jimmy Dimora is still residing in Cuyahoga County's jail. Both were here instead of serving their time in federal prison -- after being found guilty on corruption charges -- to allegedly testify before a Cuyahoga County grand jury convened by Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Tim McGinty.
Dimora has been here 92 days. Russo arrived afterwards and was here 66 days.
Russo and Dimora were the top targets of the FBI/IRS Cuyahoga County corruption probe that began a year before the very public July 28, 2008 raids by more than 200 agents at county offices and some Northeast Ohio businesses.
McGinty is conducting his own investigation of other aspects of Cuyahoga County corruption, including circumstances surrounding the county's ill-fated purchase of the Ameritrust complex for a headquarters project that never happened.
It's believed the pair are being questioned as part of that probe. Dimora had previously refused to cooperate with federal prosecutors. Russo flipped and testified against Dimora and other defendants.
O'Brien confirmed their presence, but declined to provide more specifics about their stay.
Dimora and Russo were both housed on the seventh floor of the jail and visitor logs show they had multiple visitors. Dimora's wife Lori and two of their three children -- Lisa and Joseph -- have visited, as well as Dimora's two attorneys -- his criminal attorney Christian Grostic and his civil attorney David Patton.
Russo also had visitors, including his significant other Michael Calabrese.
Dimora, 58, is serving a 28-year sentence after his 2012 conviction on 33 counts. He filed an appeal of that conviction in April 2013. Russo, 63, has been in federal prison in Loretto, Pennsylvania since Nov. 16, 2012. He reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors early in the probe and was sentenced to 22 years in prison.
