Crime & Safety

Carlsbad Man Is Labeled AzScam Figure and Faces State Investigation

Donald James Kenney, who worked in an Encinitas real estate office, is subject of scrutiny.

Donald James Kenney of Carlsbad, who worked in a Coldwell Banker real estate office in Encinitas until recently, is being investigated by the state Department of Real Estate, according to U-T San Diego.

The paper noted that Kenney “went to prison 20 years ago in one of Arizona’s most notorious public-corruption cases” and has been practicing real estate in San Diego County for almost 14 years, “using his son’s clean record to get a license.”

Kenney, 73,  is accused of being part of the so-called AzScam scandal.

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As The New York Times reported in 1991, Kenney was among three Republican state representatives indicted on charges of bribery, money laundering and filing false election statements.

Kenney of Phoenix had been the head of the Arizona House Judiciary Committee.

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The Times said the charges “grew out of a 13-month sting operation by the police in which J. Anthony Vincent, a self-described gaming consultant, paid lawmakers tens of thousands of dollars in a campaign to make casino gambling legal.”

U-T San Diego, which posted documents about Kenney’s history (attached) said Kenney denies wrongdoing and says he isn’t the lawmaker convicted in Arizona.

But the paper said:

The elder Kenney and the convicted legislator share the same date of birth and the same three colleges on their résumé. They look the same in photographs. And a letter sent to Kenney as part of his recent effort to restore civil rights lost after his conviction in Arizona was addressed to his Carlsbad home.


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