As a tech guy in a tech-brain-dead town, I must point out how much harm to the new economy and our quality of life scumbags like Tony Ma cause... Information Technology is critical to the success of the region and our IT is planned and provided by greaseballs, who typically belong in jail.

"A technology company owner pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to bribery-related charges" - "Ma and several others conspired in a kickback scheme" - "Ma was charged with two bribery-related crimes as a part of a sweeping federal investigation into public corruption in the county" - "He admitted that his company paid kickbacks that were funneled through a consulting company and ended up in the hands of County Auditor Frank Russo, his chief deputy Samir Mohammad and three others, in exchange for two county contracts."

Such corruption and stupidity in the commercial information technology sector here is destroying the region. Our tech leadership  in the region... whoever they think they are... doesn't seem to care... doesn't protest... so I guess THEY go along for the ride.

I do not.

Lock the 75-year-old bastard up for as long as the laws allow - for as many years is this lowlife crook has been robbing the public...

So many years of screwing citizens... and screwing honest tech people like me, who wouldn't pay a bribe or piss on a person who wanted a bribe if they were on fire.

I've met with the Samir Mohammad mentioned in this article and reviewed the technology disaster they have on their hands there - we can REPLACE it but there is no way to move smart initiatives through the county right now - it is DOA - nothing may happen until everyone in county leadership is GONE - the county does not even have a brain right now and can't fix a parking ticket much less a computer system. Shut down all spending at the county except for emergency services, and start firing!

Definitely - shut down the Medical Mart.

Good luck you new County Exec and Council... you are taking charge of the most brokendown palace in America...

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A technology company owner pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to bribery-related charges that will likely send him to prison.

Tony Ma, owner of Broma Information Technology, also will have to pay nearly $34,000 in restitution to Cuyahoga County.

That is his portion of the $199,000 federal prosecutors say the county lost when Ma and several others conspired in a kickback scheme.

Ma was charged with two bribery-related crimes as a part of a sweeping federal investigation into public corruption in the county that became public more than two years ago.

He admitted that his company paid kickbacks that were funneled through a consulting company and ended up in the hands of County Auditor Frank Russo, his chief deputy Samir Mohammad and three others, in exchange for two county contracts.

One was related to a mapping project headed by former county engineer employee J. Kevin Kelley. The other was a document-imaging contract in the engineer's office.

Russo and Mohammad have denied any wrongdoing. Neither is mentioned by name in court documents, but Mohammad assumes the prosecutors are referring to him. They have not been charged. Kelley and former engineer's office administrators Kevin Payne and Daniel Gallagher have pleaded guilty to their roles in the schemes.

In U.S. District Court on Monday, Ma answered a feeble-sounding "yes," when asked by Judge Kathleen O'Malley if he was aware that the illegal payments were being made to public officials.

Outside the courtroom, Ma's attorney, Bartholomew Caterino, said that while his 75-year-old client has a brilliant mind when it comes to complicated computer technology problems, his business practices and record keeping were sloppy -- and even worse, his judgment in friends.

"He trusted a lot of people," Caterino said. "And I think a lot of them really took advantage of him."

Read more about this human piece of shit here... real "brilliant mind", Caterino.

Who is your next "brilliant" client?