High-ranking employee of Lockheed Martin accused of stealing campaign sign

A high-ranking employee of Lockheed Martin has been accused of stealing a campaign sign in White Settlement, and police have referred the case to municipal court.

Precinct 4 Constable Scott Bedford, a Republican who faces two challengers in the March 5 primary, said he saw the man taking a sign on Saturday afternoon that targeted Craig Goldman, a Republican who is running for the congressional seat being vacated by Rep. Kay Granger of Fort Worth.

The sign pointed to Goldman’s signs outside of the White Settlement Library — an early voting location. It read “Voted to impeach Ken Paxton,” a reference to Goldman’s vote as a state representative.

Goldman faces Anne Henley, John C. O’Shea, Shellie Gardner and Clint Dorris in the Republican primary for the District 12 seat, which covers much of Fort Worth and Parker County.

Bedford, who was off duty at the time, said he saw O’Shea supporters putting up the signs around the corner and told them what he saw. They showed him a photo of the Lockheed employee and asked if it was him. He said he was confident it was the same man he saw removing the sign.

The employee did not respond to multiple calls asking for comment.

“Nobody should be stealing campaign signs. I don’t care what your stature is,” Bedford said.

Bedford said the supporters filed a police report. White Settlement police said the case was referred to municipal court as a Class C misdemeanor — theft less than $100. Police Chief Chris Cook said this is essentially a citation level offense.

The police report did not name a suspect.

Tarrant County GOP chair Bo French told the Star-Telegram in a statement that his understanding is that the Lockheed employee has not disputed the allegations.

“Our party works best when elected officials listen to the grassroots rather than try to silence them,” he said.

O’Shea, a former banker and investment firm owner, told the Star Telegram in an interview that he could understand Lockheed throwing its support behind Goldman because O’Shea is not a “career politician.”

O’Shea added that if the allegations are true he has no ill will toward Lockheed or the employee.

“If it’s true, he just made a stupid mistake. I’ve made plenty of stupid mistakes, too. I don’t actually think ill of him for it. I mean, I really don’t,” O’Shea said. “I’m not calling for the guy’s job or anything. He strikes me as a nice guy who made a silly decision. That’s it.”

Goldman’s campaign did not respond to an email request for comment.

“As a matter of practice, we don’t comment on allegations. We expect all employees to follow our Code of Ethics and Business Conduct,” Lockheed Martin spokesperson Sydney Owens told the Star Telegram in an email.