FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                        CRM
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 1996                          (202) 514-2007


             PRIVATE DETECTIVE INDICTED ON BANK FRAUD
          AND FALSE STATEMENT CHARGES IN CLEVELAND, OHIO

     CLEVELAND, OHIO -- The Department of Justice announced that
William N. Spognardi, Jr., a private detective in Mansfield,
Ohio, was indicted today by a federal grand jury in Cleveland on
bank fraud and false statement charges.
     The two-count indictment charges that Spognardi and an
inmate at the Mansfield Correctional Institution, James D. Crow,
submitted false and fraudulent documents to a Mansfield, Ohio
bank in order to obtain a $101,200 loan for Crow's company.  Crow
used the funds to finance the purchase of four rental properties
from Spognardi.  Crow, the inmate. previously pled guilty to the
bank fraud scheme as part of a racketeering charge that included
corruption, fraud, and drug distribution schemes that he carried
out from inside the prison.
     Spognardi, 42, a former deputy sheriff, faces up to 60 years
in prison and a fine of $2 million if convicted on these charges. 
     This indictment stems from an ongoing investigation into
corruption and other misconduct at the Mansfield Correctional
Institution.  The investigation is being conducted jointly by the
FBI, the Ohio State Highway Patrol, and the Ohio Department of
Rehabilitation and Correction.  The case is being prosecuted by
the Public Integrity Section of Criminal Division of the
Department of Justice.  
96-485