Grand jury indicts Cochise County man accused of falsifying signatures to qualify for constable

A grand jury indicted a Cochise County man for falsifying signatures to qualify for constable in the county’s precinct #5, announced Attorney General Kris Mayes on Friday.

Following an investigation by the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, Brent Thomas Tadasi Kusama was indicted on April 17 with nine felony counts of criminal charges alleging he filed nomination petitions containing falsified signatures to qualify to run for constable between July 2021 to April 2022.

According to the indictment, on March 28, 2022, Kusama completed verifications on the back of eight petitions knowing that they contained false or forged information about the electors on the front.

Kusama is facing one count of felony fraudulent schemes and practices which carries a penalty of up to 2.5 years in prison and a $150,000 fine. He is also facing eight counts of felony presentment of a false instrument for filing and signing of petitions violation. He could face up to two years in prison for each false filing.

He is also facing two counts of signing petitions violations, a misdemeanor, which come with maximum penalties of up to $2,500 in fines and six months in jail.

Kusama is scheduled to be arraigned at 9 a.m. on July 7 in Cochise County Superior Court. Assistant Attorney General Todd Lawson is prosecuting this case.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Grand jury indicts Cochise County man accused of falsifying signatures to qualify for constable