hashim yonis minneapolis park corrective action notice

8/14/2019 Hashim Yonis Minneapolis Park Corrective Action Notice

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MINNEAPOLIS PARK & RECREATION BOARD ,..---.~ HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT

Corrective Action/Discipline Documentation Please type or print in ink Attach additional pages for comments if necessary. Send signed and completed forms to HR .EMPLOYEE INFORMATIONEmployees Nametlashhtm Yonis Employee iD:104126Employees Job Title:YOUth Program Specialist Union:_______________________Supervisor: Phone:INCIDENT INFORMATION -Date/Time of lncident:~WlY 18, 2013 Location of Incident:C~~_ParkDescription of Incident: .Receiving money rent?l of field without giving the money to the Park Board.Witnesses to Incident:5~ reportWas this incident in violation of MPRB Policy, Rules &/or Civil Service Rules? 0 No ~Yes, policy(ies)/rule(s) violated how:csc Rules 11.03(8)4, 8,10,13,15,18,19

0 No ~ Yes, did the employee offer anyas the impropriety of the employees actions been explained to the employee?explanation for the conduct? (Explain):Did not take moneyPRE-DETERMINATION HEARING only required if Suspension, Demotion, or Termination is recomitiended.Employee was informed of charges on (date)8 9/2013

~ The employed was given the.opportunity to respond atthe pre-determination meeting held on (date)822~2013o The employee failed to appear at the pre-determination meeting held on (date)_______________o The employee waived the opportunity to a pre-determination meeting in writing.Attach copies ofthenot~fication ofpre-determinotion hearing letter, documentation, & notice offinol decision letter given to employee.

CORRECTIVE ACTION PLANPlan for correcting the problem:TerminationCORRECTIVE ACTION TAKEN Dir., Asst Supt, HR Mgr, and Superintendent Approval Required:Supv and Frm/MgrApprov.al Required: 0 Suspension (w/o pay) of days0 verbal warning o Demotion (Attach Hire/Job Change Form)

Page iof 2Revised: 6/12/2012

2117 W. River Rd . Mpls., M N 55411

Corrective Action/ Discipline Documentation

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CU,


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Discipline DocumentationCOMMENTS & SIGNATURES required for: Suspension, Demotion, or TerminationDirectors Signature: Date:___________________Comments:Assistant Superintendents Signature:______________________________________________________ Date ~7.~t/ 7)Human Resources Managers Signature:________________________________________________Date c / ~Comments:_____________Superintendents Signature:_________________________________________________________ Date________________Comments: (I NOTICE TO EMPLOYEES OF Lt~AL1*IGH]jthDischarge & Probationary Release VProbationary Non-Veteran Employees: Employees who have not passed probation & are not elig ib le veterans do not have a right to a hearingbefore the Civil Service Commission (CSC).Veteran Employees [Probationary & Regular (permanent)]: Any classified employee, holding a position by appointment or employed with theMPRB & who is a veteran separated from the U.S. military service under honorable conditions, has a right to a hearing prior to discharge,probationary release, involuntary demotion, or disciplinary suspen~ion in excess of3o days- No MPRB employee who is a veteran c an b e removedor demoted except for incompetence or misconduct shown after a hearing, upon due notice, & upon stated charges presented in writing.Temporary employees who are veterans-do not have a rightto a hearing.Regular (permanent) Non-Veteran Employees have a r ight to a hearing by CSC upon written reguest: Non-veterans who have passed probationareregular (permanent) employees. Discharge Rules require that the discharge must be for cause, that charges must be in writing & that theemployee has a right to a hearing.Temporary Suspension During Investigation of Charges by CSC in cases of Discharge or Probationary Release (Veterans Only): Employees whohave appealed in a timely manner maybe temporarily suspended from the time the recommendation for discharge is served to allow time forinvestigation of investigation of the charges by the CS-C. Such suspension may be for 90 calendar days, o r unt il the CSC completes theinvestigation of the charges, whichever is sooner.Suspension & Involuntary DemotionVeteran Employees [Probationary & Regular (permanent)]: Any classified employee holding a position by appointment or emplo~rnent with theMPRB, & is a veteran separated from the U.S. military service under honorable conditions, has a rightto a hearing prior to discharge, probationaryrelease, involuntary demotion, or disciplinary suspension in exce~s of3o days. No MPRB employee who is a veteran can be removed or demotedexcept for incompetence or misconduct shown after a hearing, upon due notice, & upon stated charges in writing.Disciplinary Suspension or Demotion: Employees may l~e suspended without pay for disciplinary reasons &/or for substandard performance, dithertemporarily (up to a8o days) or permanently. Regular (permanent) employees may appeal any perthanent demotion &Jor salary decrease.Requesting a HearingIMPORTANT: the employee should refer to the Civil Service Rules &/orthe oppropriote labor contract to determine what, if any, appeal rights (s)he moyhave. Th e employee may choose whether to appeal this action through the CSC or through processes available through the labor contract, but may notappeal through both.Reguesting a hearing: Non-Veterans: A written request for hearing must be mailed to the CSC within ao calendar days of when this notice wasserved in person or was receipted for at the employees ast known address. The ao days are counted f rom the first day the notice was personallyserved or the date the notice was receipted by certified mail. If the tenth day falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the request may beserved on or before the following business day. The day on postmark must be within that sn-day period. The request for a hearing may beaccompanied bythe employees statement of his/her-version of the case. If such a request is not received within in days, the employees name willbe removed form the service register. Reguesting a Hearing: Veterans: A written request for hearing must be mailed to the CSC within Go calendar days of when the notice was served in


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August 22, 2013Hashirn Yonis3458 James Ave. N .Minneapolis, Mn, 55412Subject: D etennination MeetingDear Mr. Yonis:You had your pre-determination meeting on Wednesday, August 21, 2013 at 2:30 p m at the MPR.BHeadquarters in the Powderhorn Room. The purpose of that meeting was to allow you the opportunityto respond to the yiolations listed below in compliance with the labor agieement with the MinneapolisPark Board and MPEA;

On July 18 , 2013 information was received that you were renting out Currie field since May of2013 but no deposits of money collected was made to the Minneapolis Park and RecreationBoard. Subsequently an investigation was ordered (see attached).Based on the information and documentat ion we have gathered relating to the charges and yourcoimnents at the pre-determination meeting, it has been determined that you have violated the CivilService Commission Rules and City policies and procedures cited below:

CSC Rule 11.03(B)(8) Misappropriation of City property, funds o r money.

CSC Rule 11.03(B)(10) Discourtesy to public or fel low employees.

CSC Rule 11.03@)(13) Criminalor dishonest conduct unbecoming to a public employee,whether such conduct was committed while on duty or off duty.

CSC Rule 11.03~B)(15) Soliciting or receiving funds for political purposes or personalgain during work.


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Based on all the information and documentation gathered and provided to you it ha s been determinedthat there is just cause to terminate your employment at the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Boardeffective immediately. An y and all property of the Park Board must be tu rned in immediately toAssistant Superintendent Nicholas Williams. This includes, but is not limited, to employment ID.badge, keys, uniforms; laptop, and cell phone.Shic rel

J. Ni olas V iamsAss t t erintendent for RecreationMinneapolis Park and Recreation Boardcc : MPEATeresa Chailca, MPRB Human Resources


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1 Iflth ANNIVERSARY.August 19, 2013Hashim Yonis3458 James Ave. N .Minneapolis, Mn , 55412Subject: Predetermination MeetingDearMr.Yonjs:Your attendance is required at a meeting on Wednesday, August 21, 2013 atj b p m at the MPRBHeadquarters in the Powderhorn Room. The purpose of the meeting is to allow you the opportunity torespond to the violation l is ted below in compliance with the labor agreement with the MinneapolisPark Board and IvLPEA;

On July 18, 2013 information was received that you were renting out Curr ie field since May of2013 but no deposits of money colleeted was made to the Minneapolis Park and RecreationBoard. Subsequently an investigation was ordered (see attached).Based on the information and documentation we have gathered relating to the charges, it has beendetermined that you m ay have violated the Civil Servi~e Commission Rules and City policies andprocedures cited below:

CSC Rule 11.03(B)(8) Misappropriation of City property, funds or money. Se e attached report

CSC Rule 11.03(B)(1O) Discourtesy to public or fellow employees; Se e attached report

CSC Rule 11.03(B)(13) Criminal or dishonest conduct unbecoming to a public employee,whether such conduct was committed while on duty or off duty. See attached report


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See attachedreportCSC Rule 11.03(B)(19) Knowingly making a false material statement to the Citysrepresentative during an investigation into employment related misconduct.

See attached reportCivil Service Commission Rule 11.03 (B)(4) Insubordination.

On July 26, 2013 you were placed on paid administrative leave pending theinvestigation relating to Currie Field. You received a letter instructing you not to have contact with MPRB staff other than meor Teresa Chaika, HR. On two separate occasions staff received emails from your Facebook account to ParkBoard emai l addresses asking fo r support fo r your political campaign.

At the meeting, you will be given an opportunity to respond to the above vio lat ion.. You may have aUnion representative present as pennitted in your labor agreement. If you choose to have Unionrepresentation, it is your responsibility to make any arrangements with the Union for the presence of arepresentative.

J. NichAssistantSupefintendent for RecreationMinneapolis Park and Recreation Boardcc: MPEATeresa Chaika, MPRB Human Resources

Sincerely,


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Summary of InvestigationOn July 25, 2013, Manager of Human Resources Teresa Chailca contacted me andrequested that I conduct an investigation into whether Youth Program Specialist HashimYonis took money given to h im by citizens to use Currie Field . The following is asummary of my investigation.Documents received

Permit 12881 dated July 16, 2013 for Mosse Mope to use Curie Fields everySaturday an d Sunday from 4 p.m. to 6 p m July 20-August 11. Pennitteecharged 4S0.00 in cash and permit was filled out by Sai~ah Cedarblade. Receipt for Permit 12881 for 480. Permit 12965 datecPJuly 22, 2013 for Moises Hernandez to use Curie Fields onJune29 & 30, 2013. Permit does not indicate any money was received. Permitwas filled out by Sarah Cedarblade. Other permits for Curie Fields: 12424 for Hashim Yonis dated June 19 , 2013 filled out by HashimYonis. N o cost: Permit cancelled. 11157 for Hashim Yonis for Youthline Soccer (several dates April-July)dated April 23, 2013 filled out by Sarah Cedarblade. No cost.

4 54 8 fo rOlubusayo Phillips for soccer tournament dated April 23, 2013filled out by Sarah Cedarblade. Cost of 150. 10772 for Olubusayo Phillips for soccer tournament dated April 2, 2013filled out by Sara Cedarblade. No cost. 9215 for Masjid Shaafici Cultural Center for Bid Gathering datedJanuary 31, 2013 filled out by Sarah Cedarb iade. Cost of$ 20Q. 7183 for Brian Coyle Comnunity Center fo r Coyle soccer dated Qctober3, 2012 filled out by Sarah Cedarbiade. No cost. 7072 for Brian Coyle Community Center fo r soccer pratice datedSeptember 26, 2012 filled out by Sarah Cedarblade~ No cost. 7043 for Abdirahman Idle for Adult soccer dated September 25, 2012filled out by Sarah Cedarblade. No cost.

6538 fo r Masjid Shaafici Cultural Center for Bid Celebration datedAugust 20, 2012 filled out by Sarah Cedarblade. Cost of$ 150.e 5267 fo r Hashim Yois for Youthline Soccer dated August 20, 2012filled out by Sarah Cedarbiade. No cost. Pcnnit was cancelled. 6456 fo r Cedar Riverside West Bank Safety forNight Out basketball


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Email string beginning with email from Mohamed Jama, General Director ofCedar Riverside Youth Council, to Larry Umphrey dated July18, 2013 readingP.S. the rent fee Mexican Tournament and Memorial Day Tournament in Mayand June. Mr. Yonis, Charged the organizers about 460 [ejvery weekend. Thecommunity will like to know where the money is being taken to. Please Contact,Moise Hernaudes, 651-447-9870 (cell) ASAP.

Position Description for Youth Program Specialist Various frnancial reports for parks surrounding Currie and for Hashirn Yonis Schedules for May, June & July 2013 fo r Latino soccer teams run by MoiseHernandez Emails between Sarah Cedarbiade and Hashim Yonis for July 2013 Two Statements of Moise Hernandez taken by Sgt. Rick Doll on July25 and 26,2013 July 26, 2013 Interview by Sgt. Rick Doll of Hashim Yonis Emails between Cynthia Wilson, Sarah Cedarblade and Hashim Yonis betweenApril 1,2013 and August 1,2013 June 27, 2013 email from Moharned Jama to Commissioner Vreeland attaching aJune 22~ letter and petition to have Yonis removed froth ~urrie.

Interview with Al BangoraOn July 25, 2013, I interviewed Al Bangora, Director of Recreation Centers andPrograms. Bangora advised me that Currie Park was renovated in 2011. At the time, theSomali Conmiunity wanted to manage (i.e. run) the field. Commissioner Vreelandadvised Bangora and Larry Urnphrey that Currie f ie ld would be a community driven,public field arid it would not be permitted by the Park Board, Instead, a SomaliCommunity committee would decide how it would be used. Bangora and Umphrey metwith members of the Somali Community and gave them a template they could use (ifthey wanted) to schedule the field. Bangora said he does not know if the SomaliCommunity charges fo r use of the field although he believes they do not. If they do, thePark Board does not get any part of the fee. Bangora is unsure whether anyone abovehim was aware that the Coninunity ran the fields. He said that the Park Board doesprovide external maintenance fo r the field.Bangora said that there is no Youthline staff assigned to Currie Park. He does not knowwhat Yonis directive is, but does know he spends a lot of time at the Coyle Center. Thepark was under Cynthia Wilsons CSA but now is under Larry Umphrey.


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I asked B angora about the email string starting with Mohammed Jama, wherein he(Bangora) stated that he was going to ask Cynthia Wilson about Yonis managing thefields and he said he did not do so because there was going to be an investigation.Interview with Larry UmphreyOn July 25, 2013 I interviewed Larry Urnphrey. Umphrey advised me that when CynthiaWilson was off work with the Park Board due to her termination in 2010, Umphrey tookover her CSA which included ~urrie Park. In March, 2011 he had multiple conversationswith ConmuEssioner Vreeland, and his direction was that Currie f ie ld would not bepermitted or rented; it would be a community/public park. Umphrey said he advisedthen-Assistant Superintendent ofRecreation Corky Wiseman of the decision. Umphrey

gave Pillsbury United a template to schedule the fields. In July 2011, Umphrey moved toNorth Minneapolis and did not have any further contact with Currie until about twoweeks ago when he took over as Manager of-the area that includes Currie.Umphrey stated that he was working with the Coyle Center on the Owlz prograim NightOwlz started on Friday, July 12th~ Umphrey was at the Center and was outside in thepark. Mohamed Jama approached-him and said he was boncerned about the schedulingof the field. Jarna said that a Latino group was renting the field on Saturdays andSundays and the Community was upset. Umphrey gave Jama his email address and toldJarna that the field was not supposed to be i5ermitted out. Umphrey asked Jama if hethought the Latinos were just showing up early and then monopolizing the field (whichwould be allowed) and Jama said no, that they were going through Yonis. Umphreyasked fo r the Latino s contact information. .- On Tuesday, July ~ limphrey got a call from Yonis asking ho~v to deposit 400 andsome dollars for a rental at Currie Park. Uniphrey said he was thinking about how itcould be done because Currie does not have a MPRB center, and so was thinking itshould be attached to a center like Luxton or Mathews or through-Tim in Youth Sports.He told Yonis that if he had money, he had to go through ActiveNet and print out areceipt. He did not see his conversation as giving permission for Yonis to getCedarbiade to issue a permit.On July 18th at about 3 p.m., Umphrey had a meeting with the Cedar Riverside YouthCouncil at the Cedar Riverside apartments. Jama told Umphrey that the Lat inos werepaying fo r the field and that Yonis was the field manager. About 3:45 p.m., Urnphreydrove to headquarters and called the Latino contact, Hemandez, whose name he receivedfrom Jama via email. Hernandez acknowledged it was he who answered the phone and


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Urnphrey had spoken to him. Umphrey said he was working on a field schedule forCoyle/Currie and was checking with everyone who was using it. Umphrey said that hethen reported this to Bangora and to the police.Umphry said he supervised Yonis for about six months before moving to the northside,and would check on him because Yonis had an odd schedule and Umphrey hadsuspicions that Yonis was not working when he said he was, but would always be therewhen Umphi-ey checked on him. Uinphrey said that the scuttlebutt is that Yonis is notalways where he should be but lie personally has seen nothing to back that up. Yonis isat Coyle a lot.Interview with Sarah CedarbladeOn July 26, 2012 1 interviewed Sarah Cedarbiade. Cedarblade is a Recreation Leader andusually works out of Mathews Park. Last year Cedarblade had to handle Currie Parkincluding any permitting, making sure the bathrooms were locked and certif~,ing thecoaches. She also had to handle any problems that caine up. This year, Cedarblade saidshe would no longer handle Cuff ie as it is outside her job duties. Cedarblade said thatYonis then came to her to issue permits because he does not know how to enterinformation into ActiveNet.. He would give her the information and she would look tosee what i t wou ld cost, and then he would bring her the money.With respect to Peimit 12881, Cedarblade said that Yonis caine to her on July 16th andhad 480.00 for a permit for Currie f ields but said he did not know the permittees name.He gave Cedarblade the name Mosse Moye. Cedarblade asked for an address and Yonissaid he did no t have one so Cedarblade entered the address for Mathews Park. She saidthe money is still in the safe at Mathews. I asked what she would normally do with themoney and she said she would code it to the Mathews revolving account and then ifYonis wanted cash he would ask her for it. There is no ledger; she has a rough idea ofhow much money he has given her. Cedarblade said that Yonis has only given her cash.twice; for Pennit 12881 and for 12955. Cedarbiade said that the receipt for MosseMoye was emailed to Yonis. Everything that is On 12881 Yonis told her to put in. Iasked if she questioned the fact that he said it was fo r a soccer tournament but was forseveral weekends in a row. She said it is not her job to question him.With respect to Permi t 12955, Cedarblade said that Yonis came to her on Monday, July22nd and had a sheet of paper with Hernandezs name and address and said that this wasthe correct information for the permittee on Permit 12881. Cedamblade said she did not


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Garmany 13,000. She called Huy and Huy must have called Yonis because onWednesday or Thursday Yonis called and said that h is Hernandez was not the sameperson as the one who owed the money.Cedarblade said that there are always people playing on the currie field; she does notknow why some games are permitted and others ar e not.On July 29, 2013, followed up with Cedarblade. Sgt. Doll had advised me that whenYonis spoke to him on Friday, July 2&, Yonis had told Doll that Mosse Moye wassomeone different than Moise Hernandez, and that although the dates/times they weresupposed to use the fields the same, Somalis and Latinos just work things out. Thus, Iwanted to confirm with Cedarblade what Yonis had told her on Monday July 22~ aboutthe permittees. Cedarblade said Yonis was absolutely clear to her that Mosse Moye andMoise Hernandez were the same person. Cedarbiade said she even followed up with Huylast Wednesday to ask how she could amend a permit because they were the same person.Summary of Sgt. Dolls Interviews with Moise HernandezOn July 25, 2013, Sgt. Rick Doll interviewed Moise Hernandez over the phone throughan interpreter. Hernandez told Doll the following:

He paid Hashim 440 for 11 hours of use of Currie fields fo r June29 & 30, 2013He has paid Hashim for every Saturday & Sunday for a while now. He has given Hashim 440 every week for four~weeks with the fifth week beingthe upcoming weekend (7/27 & 7/28) He pays in cash He doesnt get a receipt from Hashim They have to leave at 6 p.th. on Sundays because the Somalis have a tournamentthat starts at 6 p.m. As long as you le t us continue playing, even if you dont want to give me areceipt, thats fine. Bin just let us continue playing.. .because my people donthave any other place to go play. He asked to meet with Sgt. Doll in person.

On July 26, 2013, Sgt. Doll interviewed Hernandez in person. Hernandez told him thefollowing:

He paid cash to Hashim every week. He personally gave it to Hashim. He started paying Hashim the first weekend in May-May 4th ~ 5th


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Summary of Sgt. Dolls Interview of Hashim YonisOn July 26, 2012, Sgt. Doll interviewed Hashim Yonis. Yonis told Doll the following:

Permit 12881 dated 7/16/13 fo r Mosse Moye was issued for the MuslimRamadan. The person gave him 480 for the permit which he gave to SarahCedarbiade. He may have misspelled the permittees name. That is the onlypermit he has for that person. It is a different person than the person who he gotthe 440 from. He also gave Cedarbiade 440$ for use of the fields by a Latino guy namedHernandez. Someone referred Hernandez to him and Hernandez said h wouldlike to rent the fields. He said lie could talk to Sarah, and she gave him theamounts for rental. He cal led Hernandez back to say it would be 40/hourbecause he lived outside the city. Hernandez gave him 440$ fo r use of the fieldsJune 29 & 30, and paid him the next Sunday. He held on to the money because hedid not know what to do with it Hernandez brought him $1300 hs t Saturday (7/20) and it is in h is office at LuxtonPark. He has notes that show when Hernandezs teams played. Hemandez never rented the fields before June 29tN Sarah will create the permits for the times covered by the $1300 or $13202 atLuxton and then email him the receipt. He is not trained to issue a permit or receipt. If the play t ime for Hernandezs group and the Somali group overlap, theynegotiate. Everyone works together.

Interview with Hashim YonisOn August 1, 2013, I interviewed Hashim Yonis. Yonis has worked as a Youth ProgramSpecialist for the Park Board since the end of2OlO. He does youth programming atLuxton and Mathews Parks, and until recently, at Van Cleeve Park. He also doesprogramming at Currie Park. He has an office at Luxton.Yonis says he was trained to create youth programs on ActiveNet. All of his activitiesare free.Yonis could not explain permit 12424, which indicates that he issued the permit tohimself on June 19th f rom Luxton Park and then cance lled it. He said someone could


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Yonis said that he shares an office with Nguyen and that Nguyen is the guru about allissues related to ActiveNet. Yonis said that if he has questions about ActiveNet, Nguyenis the guy to go to.Yonis said he has never received any training on the Park Boards policies on receivingmoney and making deposits.Yonis says he is not aware how Currie fields are scheduled. I asked if he was ever toldthat the Somali Community schedules the field, and he said that the community comes tohim if they want to use the fields. Yonis stated that Currie Park is public property andanyone can use it.I asked what he has scheduled on Currie field and he sa id he had scheduled PAL soccerbut that he did not issue a permit for PAL. He said he keeps track of the use of Currie onhis calendar. I asked for a copy of his calendar and he said he did not know where it was-that it could be at one of the parks [Luxton or Mathews] , or in his car or at his home.3Yonis said that in addition to PAL, he scheduled the fields for Hernandez and also for theRamadan soccer tournament. I asked if he had anything to do with the April 2, 2013permit issued to Olubusayo Phill ips for the Cuff ie field and he said no. He also said hewas not involved in issuing the January 31, 2013 permit for the 2013 Bid celebration. Hesaid he may have referred both of them to Cedarblade to issue permits. He said that inthe last week hi May, he and Cynthia Wilson and Cedarbiade had email communicationsaying that Yonis would be taking over the scheduling of Currie.Yonis said he first met Moises Hernandez when Hernandez approached him on the Curriefields to ask about renting the field. Yonis first said the meeting was probably a week orso before the first rental of June 29th, but then said it was around the end of May.Hernandez probably approached Yonis on a Thursday, at the end of May.4 Yonis said hecharged Hernandez 40$/hour to rent the field because Hernandez told Yonis that he livedoutside of Minneapolis. Yonis cabnot recall what address he was given but Hernandezsaid he lived outside ofMinneapolis. The only t ime Yonis discussed with anyone fromthe Park Board the amount of money he charged Hemandez was when he gave the 440to Cedarblade.Yonis said that he got the 1320 found at Luxton from Hernandez for rentals after June29 & 30~. It was~ fo r three weeks of rental on Saturdays and Sundays. The money he gotfrom Hernandez was in cash, mostly twenties. He was paid over a period of time, usuallyon the Sunday that the group played but sometimes the next Sunday. Hernandez alwayspaid after his group had actually played. Yonis said that his calendar would reflect when


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Yonis said he never provided Hernandez with a receipt, but Cedarbiade would emailYonis a receipt and then if Hernandez asked for receipt he would have provided it. Yonissaid he never gave Hernandez a receipt because he ha s never been trained in the protocolsof giving receipts and he did not have a receipt book. When I asked if he understood howimportant i t was to give a receipt, he said he was not trained. He also said that there is nocomputer at Currie Park to issue a pennit or give a receipt. He insisted that he was nottrained to give a receipt, including to simply write on a piece of paper that money wasreceived. He also said that his Community works on trust. Yonis said he was told byCynthia Wilson to get the money and, talce it to Cedarblade which I did repeatedly.5Yonis said that this directive is in emails. The ernails between he, Wilson andCedarblade will indicate that Yonis will take over scheduling Currie and any money thatis gathered will. go directly to Cedarblade.With respect to the email he sent to Cedarblade on July 19th stating that he had Curriepark rental money, he said that the rental money to which he feferred included the$1320.00 that was found at Luxton.I asked why Yonis did not immediately deposit the $1320 or ask someone to do so, andhe said that it was in a safe place, he did not have the technology at Currie, an d he did notask Nguyen to do it because he was not part of the conversation about Currie Park, i t washe, Cedarbiade and Wilson.With respect to Permit 12965 issued at 6:03 p m on July 23, 2012 by Cedarblade toMoise F{emandez, Yonis was at fn-st very evasive about his input into creating the permit.Eventually he admitted that he asked Cedarblade to issue a permit to Hernandez forhaving rented Cuff ie Park on the previous June 29~ and 3 0th. Yonis said that all permitsfor Hernandez were issued afier the fact. When I asked why he waited so long to issuethe permit, Yonis called it an honest mistake and said he was not trained on how andwhen to deposit money. Yonis said that he gave Cedarblade 440 to cover the June 29and 30th dates and Cedarblade issued him a receipt. He did not give the receipt toHernandez because he was not trained to issue a receipt to an individual and because hehad no computer to print a receipt. Yonis could not recall when he got the 440 he gaveto Cedarbiade bu t it would have been within a week after the fields were used.When I asked whether Yonis gave Cedarbiade the information to put in to Permit 12695, Yonis claimed that Hemandez had originally given him a different name and thenone day Hernandez gave him his real name. Yonis claimed that Hemandez originallygave him a nickname ofMoy-something. I then asked Yonis if the name on Permit


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Phillips. That was also the first time he knew Hemandez lived in Minneapolis. Yonissaid he was very curious about Hernandez because originally he gave a nickname, andthen gave no address and now it showed that he owed a lot of money: He had aconversation with Nguyen about it.Yonis says he was always confused about Hernandezs event because it took place onthe same days as the one month Ramadan tournament, for which Permit 12881 wasissued.I asked Yonis why, when he brought Cedarblade the $440 for the June 29/30 games hedid not also bringher the $1320. He was evasive, saying that he works at so many parksthat sometimes he doesnt have the energy to drive backto Luxton; that he was nottrained to do it; and that he gave Cedarbiade the money he had on him on July 22ndWhen I asked Yonis if he had the 440 on him, Yonis said that Hernandez probably gavehim the money that day. When I reminded him tha t it was supposedly fo r games playedalmost a month previous he said he was confused by my questions. I then confirmedhe had the $1320 at Luxton when he went to Cedaa-blade for the permit for June 29/30and gave her the 440. I asked again why he gave Cedar.blade the 440 but not the 1320 and he said the 1320 was locked in a safe place but the 440 was right on histable and he thought he should huffy and get her the money. It didnt occur to him to getthe other money. I reminded him that Mr. Hemandez generally paid him the same day,or within a week after games were played, and thus he had the 440 for about threeweeks. He confirmed that, so I asked if that meant that the 440 was sitting on his tablefor three weeks while the 1320 was put away. He again said he was confused by myquestion. I asked again why he would give Cedarblade $440 for an event three weeksprior but not the 1320 he had been collecting in the ensuing weeks and he said he didntreally know or remember.Regarding the text message he sent to Larry Umphrey on July l8~ 6saying he got a callfrom a Latino groi.ip, Yonis said a woman from Hernandezs group called him and he saidhe would call his supervisor and find out why Umphrey was calling them. He said thatthe first time he was aware that anyone was asking about the scheduling of the ~urriefields.Regarding Permit 12881 for Mosse Moye issued on July 16~ by Cedarbiade, Yonis saidhe asked her to issue the permit and gave her the information to put in the permit. I askedwho Mosse Moye was and he sa id he knows him by a nicknanie, he is one of the leadersof one of the Mosques and his name is Mohanuned and he wanted to do a soccertournament for the month of Ramadan. I asked Wit was a coincidence that bothMohammed and Hernandez had the same nickname ofMbye, and he said he didnt


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agreed he gave Cedarbiade the name Mosse Moye but said again that he was conflised. Iasked if he meant to say Mohammed but gave Cedarbiade the nickname Hernandez gavehim and lie said yes but then said that it might be an ActiveNet issue where the name justpopped up. I asked if he could give me more information about Mohammed and he saidhe just had the one name and did not have contact information but said he could get it forme. Yonis told me that Mohammeds team played from 6-8 p m after Hernandezsteams were done. I asked why the permit said 4-6 p.m. and he said it might be anActiveNet issue. I asked ifhewa~ saying he did not tell Cedarbiade to put in 4-6 p.m.and he said that he did tell her that, but he meant to say 6-8 p.m. I asked if Yonis gaveCedarblade 480 for the permit and he said yes. I asked if he go t the receipt and he saidyes. I asked if he gave the receipt to Mohammed and he said he had no computer to printa receipt an d he didnt get any training about giving receipts. I asked Yonis if he toldCedarblade that Mosse Moye and Moise Hernandez were the same person and he said hemay or may not have done so because he was confused. When I asked how he could beconfused about them being the same person, when he knew that Permit 12881 was forMohammed, Yonis said he didnt remember what he told Cedarblade.Yonis said that the f irst t ime he ever took money from Hemandez to rent Currie field wasright after June ~ and 30th and that was the 440 he gave to Cedarblade on July 22~:Yonis denied that Hernandez first started renting the fields on Ma y 4, 2013 and deniedthat Hernandez has been ~ayhigYonis to rent the fields every Saturday and Sunday sinceMay 4, 2013. He sa id he met Hernandez at the end of Ma y and has no idea if hes using[Currie) without my permission. Yonis denied telling Hernandez to tell people whoasked that he started renting Currie field on June 29th~ He said he did not receive orgather anycash fo r Qirrie f ields before June29 and 30thFollow up interview with Sarah CedarbladeOn August. 5, 2013, I conducted a follow up interview with Sarah Cedarblade. I askedher about several emails that were exchanged between her and Yonis, and her andCynthia Wilson.With respect to the April 2S, 2013 email f rom Yonis to her asking her to issue him apermit fo r several dates between 4/30 and 7/9 she did so because there is no staff at CoylePark and if Yonis wanted some time to be scheduled, she would issue a permit to him.Her response of April 23, 2013 informed him that she could issue the permit for Curriebut that he needed to talk to Tim Grate about Riverside. She then issued the permit andsent it to him via email.


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field. She thinks Phill ips came to Mathews Park and she gave him the receipt after hepaid her the $161.66.Regarding the Ma y 22, 2013 email from Shawn Hockett about the Currie Park lights, hed id not know how to turn them on so she sent him to Yonis.Regarding the July 3, 2013 email, which states in part Did you ever figure out how todeposit the rental money? If not stop by and I can show you, Cedarblade did not recallmuch about it. She said that when Yonis first took over the rental of Currie, one of theTuesdays that he was at Mathews fo r Circle, he said he had money from Currie. Aflershe sent the email asking if he figured out ho* to deposit the money, he told her he hadtalked to Huy. Cedarblade does not know if the money he said he had was the 480 helater gave to her from Moye. She is not sure how long after he asked her about how todeposit money she sent the email bu t it was sometime in May or June. I showed her theMay 20, 2013 email from Cynthia Wilson stating that Yonis would take over schedulingof the Currie fields, an d Cedarblade said her conversation with Yonis about depositingmoney probably took place between Ma y ~ and July 3~. Cedarblade then said thattheir conversation was probably on a Tuesday and then she probably followed up whenshe didnt hear from him. I asked ifshe could narrow it down, and she said that July 3~was a Wednesday. I asked if their conversation could have been July 2~ and she said no.because she did not think they had Circle the week of the Fourth of July and also shewould not have followed up that quickly. She thought it was either the 25th or the ~ ofJune but would check to see what days they had Circle. I asked if it seemed strange thatYonis would later come to her to ask her to deposit money, when he had previously askedher how to do it and also told her he talked to Huy about how to deposit money, and shesaid kind of; but that Huy and Yonis do not get along well.With respect to the May 2O~~ email from Wilson stating that Yonis would take over theCurrie field scheduling, Cedarblade said there was no other communication about thefields. She said that there was no communication that Yonis would come to her forpermits. She said that she told him she would show h im how to do permits, but it was herunderstanding that Yonis would learn how to do it with her help or that of Huy, not thathe would just bring money to her.With respect to the June 4, 2013 email from Mohammed Jama seeking to rent the fieldsfor July 4th she notified Jama to contact Yonis. She is not sure if Jama would have beencharged but probably not. She does not recall any follow-up from Jama. Cedarblade didsay that Jama called her a couple of weeks ago wanting to know about getting coachescertified. She also sent him to Yonis. She believes this Jama is the same Jama as the onewhose email to Umphrey started the investigation (she is not aware of the email but their


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Cedarbiade confirmed that she gave Yonis the folder that lists the charges for field use.Cedarblade said she was never told (as Yonis said in h is statement) that money fromCurrie rental would come to her to deal with. Why would it? She said that if someonehad told her. that, she would have questioned it. Cedarbiade said that if she had been toldshe had to collect the money from Currie then the permittee should come to her with themoney and she would issue them a receipt.Cedarblade emailed me after the interview and stated that Circle had been on June 18 andJuly 2nd I asked if she thought that meant that she and Yonis discussion about rentalmoney happened on the 8~ since she had told me she probably would not have followedup the next day if it had been on July 2~ and she said yes, she believes it was the ~Interview with Moise Hernandez On August 6, 201ST interviewed Moise Hernandez through an interpreter, Carlos. Alsopresent was Hernandezs wife, Fermina Valdez. Hemandez told me that he has beenrenting fields from the Park Board since May, 2013. He rents Curie, Stewart Park andEast Phillips. Hernandez pays 30/hour for Stewart Park and East Phillips Park. He paysin cash. and always gets a rece ip t. He pays Lou at Stewart and Travis at East Phillips.His teams play at Stewart and Currie every Saturday and Sunday, and East Phillips everySunday.In the first week in May, 2013 Hernandez and his wife went to the Brian Coyle Center toinquire about renting the Curie f ie ld . Kalimba, who is in charge of the office, gave themHashim Yonis number. They contacted him and lie invited them to meet with him in theoffice at Brian Coyle. Hernandez was unable to recall exactly what day they met withhim, but it was between May l~ and Ma y 4th~ Yonis told h im he could rent the field andasked what hours he wanted it. Hernandez told him between 5 and 6 hours on Saturdaysand Sundays. Yonis told him it would be 40/hour. Hernandez said Yonis tQld him theprice was 40/hour instead of $30/hour because he was charging what the SomaliCommunity charges. Yonis told them that the people who live in the apartment buildings,own the fields and that they d id not want to rent them-that they (the community) said thatthe playground was built for them. Hernandez said he went back to the parents of thekids he organizes the games fo r and asked if they were okay with paying 40/hour. Theyagreed even though it was expensive and even though they knew the price was supposedto be 30/hour. I asked if Yonis ever told Hernandez that the price was 40/hour


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Sunday. They told me that on the schedule for Saturday (Sabado), the games wereplayed at Stewart Park and Currie Park and that the first set of games listed on eachSaturday was played at Stewart and the second se t at currie. On the schedule for Sunday(Domingo), the games were played at East Phillips Park, Stewart Park and Currie Parkand that the first se t of gaines listed on each Sunday was played at East Phillips, thesecond set at Currie and the third set at Stewart.7 They bracketed in red the gaines thatwere played at Cuff ie and confn-med that they have played at ~urrie every Saturday andSunday since Ma y 4, 2013.Hernandez, his wife, or his daughter paid Yonis for every game since Ma y 4tb The firsttime they paid Yonis was on Ma y 5th They would pay Yonis on Sundays before theystarted the first game at 2 p.m. They couldnt go to Yonis office because.the CoyleCenter is closed on Sundays, so Yonis would open a little door by the bathrooms near thefield and they would go into a room where there is stored equipment and Yonis wouldshut the door.8 They would pay Yonis cash. Hernandez said he had no problem withexchanging the money with Yonis in this closed door room since he believes Yonis did itto be safe, to keep people from knowing that there was cash exchanging hands. Themoney exchange was always witnessed by Hernandez, his wife and his daughter but noone else.Hemandez says he never got a receipt from Yonis. He said that in June, he approachedYonis and said that if Yonis would not lower the price, at least he could give Hernandez areceipt. Yonis said not to worry, he was the boss there, no problem amigo. Hemandezsaid he trusted Yonis because he was the owner and because he wore a Park Boardshirt.9Hernandez said that the only person they ever paid to use Cuff ie field was Yonis, and thatthey never used currie f ield without paying because it is not permitted (i.e. notallowed). Hernandez confirmed that a Somali group took the field at 6:00 after his teamsfrnished playing. The Somali group played through last weekend.Hernandez said he originally told Sgt. Doll that they did not start renting the Currie fielduntil June 29th because Yonis told them to say that. He said that about a week before hefirst spoke with Sgt. Doll over the phone, Yonis called him and asked to meet with him atCurne field. He believes it might have been July ~ They met at Currie Park and sa tOn July20 it appears that there are three sets of games played with the third set being played at Currie;however, the 2O~ was a Saturday and so only two sets of games were played-the first group played atStewart with a break between and 4p.m.


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on a park bench. Yonis instructed Hemandez~ to tell Larry Urnphrey that they startedusing the field on June 29th Hei-nandez asked why and Yonis said that if they said theystarted in May, they would not be able to rent in September because he couldnt rent thefields fo r a long period of time. Yonis said that if he told Larry they started on June 29thhis group could rent the fields through October. Henandez believed Yonis explanationbecause he knows there are some parks that do not rent for long periods of time; fo rexample some schools rent f ie lds for certain times so they cant rent them then.Hernandez said that when he learned from the police that Yonis had only made onepayment to the Park Board he realized why Yonis told him to lie, but originally hethought Yonis was tell ing him to lie because hc (Hernandez) had a problem (i.e. that hewouldnt be able to rent the f ields long term). He then told the truth to Sgt. Doll that hehad been paying Yonis since May to rent the fields. Hernandez said that Yonis also toldhim to tell Larry that he always paid 440 to rent the fields. I asked if that was true aridhe said no, sometimes he paid fo r an hour or tw~ more, but Yonis said to say he paidexactly 440 each w eekend. I asked if he ever paid Yonis a lump suit of$ 1320 and hesaid no.Hernandez last had contact with Yonis on July 2V when he paid h im fo r that weekend.Using the schedules provided by Hernandez, by my calculation, Hernandez paid Yonis 1720 in May, and $1840 through June 23rd~ Yonis provided Cedarblade 440 on July22~ which ostensibly was for June 29-30; and another $1320 was found at Luxton. Bymy calculation, again using the schedules, Hemandez paid Yonis 1600 to rent Curriebetween July 6-21. That leaves missing 3,840. It should be noted that Yonis was alsoovercharging Hernandez to rent the fields f rom May 4-July 20~ by ten dollars per hour.By my calculation Hernahdez is owed 1600.00.Interview with Huy NguygenOn August 6, 2013, I interviewed Huy Nguyen by telephone. Nguyen is the director atLuxton Park. Nguyen stated that Hashim Yonis has his own office at Luxton but if Yoniswants to use the computer then they share Nguyens office. Nguyen said that in thespring of this year, in the May t ime period, Cynthia Wilson said that she and Yonis weregoing to be handling Coyle, so Nguyen showed Yonis ho w to issue a permit. He said heand Yonis did a practice permit issuance approximately and /2 times by filling out fakepermits but not actually posting them. Nguyen said that after that, Yonis had a good ideaof what needed to be done. While he wouldnt be proficient until he actually issued afew more permits, Yonis knew the policies and the process fo r issuing permits.


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Nguyen if he thought the conversation was around June 18th as Cedarbiade believed, hesaid yes, end of June. Nguyen added that he did not know Yonis was actually doingpermits fo r Currie. Yonis just started asking questions in the last month, so he must havejust started to pennit at Coyle. Nguyen has not seen any paperwork.from Cuff ie rentals.Nguyen said that on July 25th or 26th Yonis told Nguyen that Cedarbiade was going tocall him to ask how to issue a backdatedpennit for some guy named Hernandez. Nguyensaid he asked Yonis why he would backdate a permit, that they were required to get themoney and then issue the permit. He said he told Yonis it was harder to issue abackdated permit and that is wh y they do a permit before an event. Nguyen said it wasthe f irst t ime he was aware of a permit fo r Hernandez. He said Yonis said it was for 10hours, $ 40/hour for an out-of-town resident for a total of$ 440. Nguyen calledCedarblade the next day to ask if she had figured out the Hernandez permit. She said shehad and had post-dated it, but also said she did not have the right information on the guy,and that he owed $14,000 and that she had called Travis to ask if this guy was the sameguy who owed Travis . Nguyen said he told Cedarblade to call Larry before sbecompleted the permit and deposited the money because something didnt sound right. Hesaid that Cedarbiade needed to get the right person and hours, because Yonis had toldhim the man rented fo r ten hours at the out-of-town rate but this Hernandez lived in town.I asked if Nguyen knew anything about a person named Moye getting a permit and hesaid no.Follow up interview with Hashim YonisOn August 8, 2013 I interviewed Hashim Yonis to follow up on some issues. Yonisconfirmed that he has always been aware that any money that he collected from rental ofCuff ie Park belonged to the Park ~oard and had to be turned over to the Park Board. Heclaimed he was no t trained on the protocol of how and when to turn over the money, buthe knew that he had to do so and he said he has turned over all of the money he collectedfrom Cuff ie to the Park Board. -I asked Yonis when Mohammed, who rented the fields fo r the Ramadan tournament,approached him. He said it was about a week before the tournament started on July 20thYonis said Mohammed approached him while he was on Currie field and asked to rentthe fields fo r certain days. Yonis looked that the schedule and said he could rent them,and chaaged $ 30/hour. He said Mohammed gave him the money a few days later. Iasked why he gave the money to Cedarblade so soon after getting it b ut did n ot turn in the 440 he got from Hernandez fo r the Ju.ne 29 & 30th rental until some three weeks later.He said it was because he had the 480 in h is desk while the other money was in thesafe.


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Most of them were innocuous. He confirmed that he asked fo r a permit from Cedarbladeon April 23~ for youthline soccer and said he did so , so it was clear when his group wasusing the fields. He said he did not recall getting a copy of the permit Cedarblade issuedto Mr. Phi ll ips for April 30th~ He said he did not recall gett ing the email about ShawnHockett wanting to use the Currie lights. H e d id recall receiving the emai l fl-omCedarbiade forwarding Mohammed Jamas request for use of the Currie fields July 1-6,but said that Jama never followed up with him. With respect to the July 3, 2013 emailfrom Cedarblade to him asking about whether he ever learned to deposit rental money,Yonis said he did not recall getting it and doesnt know why Cedarblade would ask that.He does not remember ever having any conversation with Cedarblade about depositingrental money and he doesnt remember ever getting back to her after July nrd about herquestion. He also doesnt remember having any conversation with Nguyen aboutdepositing rental money or about depositing money into a Coyle or Currie account. Hesaid it *as possible he asked Cedarblade about depositing money but it would have beenjust curiosity.I asked about the email from Jennifer Blevins dated May 14th requesting scheduling ofthe fields f or P AL soccer. He said he could not recall if he issued a permit to her or if heasked Cedarblade to issue a permit. I asked if the email from Blevins that he sent Ma y10 saying he was in charge of the f ields, or the email that Wilson sent to CedarbladeMay 20th, refreshed his recollection of when he took over scheduling the fields and hesaid it was mid-May.I asked if there were any other emails that se t forth his duties or those of Cedarblade withrespect to the scheduling of Currie, permitting of Currie or the depositing of rental moneythat he was aware of other than the one from Ma y 20 from Wilson to Cedarblade justsaying that Yonis would be scheduling Currie and he sa id there might or might not be.Yonis denied ever being trained by Nguyen to issue permits, but said he did notremember if Nguyen ever showed h im how to fill out a permit. He also said he did notremember if Nguyen ever went through the procedures for issuing a permit with him. Hethrther said he did not remember if he ever asked Nguyen how to issue a permit after he~started collecting rent at Currie.Yonis said he did recal l talking to Nguyen about the Hernandez pci-mit but cannot -remember the substance of the conversation. He does not remember if Nguyenquestioned him about backdating permits.


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Hernandez. He denied ever telling Herandez to tell Urnphrey that he paid 440 everyweek even though it wasnt true. He asked why would I do that?Finally, I advised Yonis that his calendar was not at Mathews or Luxton Park and askedif there was another park it could be at. He said no. He said it is not in his car but he stillneeds to look at his home. Yonis gave me the telephone number of Mohammed Orono(ph) who he said is the Mohaimned who rented the fields for the Ramadan Tournament.Interview with Cynthia WilsonOn August 9, 2013, linterviewed Cynthia Wilson. I asked about her understanding aboutprogramming at Currie Park and she said that there is not a whole lot of programming.She said that Currie was set up by Comnissioner Vreeland to be mostly free unless adultswere going to be using the pm-k for a block of time or for a tournament. I asked whoconveyed that to her and she said it was sketchy; she heard i t f rom Cedarbiade and HeidiPope. Wilson said that people were complaining that the adults would monopolize thef ields when they were intended fo r the youth . The b iggest misunderstanding was that thefields were free. Eventually someone decided that adults would have to get permits andpay for the f ields. Jennifer Blevins from Coyle Center would have people come an d toschedule the fields through her but she did.not want to have anything to do with the field.So, when Wilson was based at Mathews, she would do the permitting and then she got aCode 8 to gather the information. When Cedarblade moved to Mathews, Cedarbladeagreed to take over the rentals at Currie. Then if someone came to Coy le and asked to usethe f ield, Bievins staff could send them to Mathews. However, that still wasnt workingbecause people either were not coming to Mathews to rent the f ie lds or would comethere, but not understand the process-especially the Somali Community-and then woulduse the field without getting a permit. She thinlcs concerns about the process were

coming to Commissioner Vreeland.In the meantime they were talking to Coyle about programming. Coyle wanted moneybut that was not an optiOn so. they were going to assign part time staff to assist withprograms. Yonis was working on the programming and Wilson thought that maybe thefield rental system would work better if Yonis would go over to help with the

- cornnunication. Wilson fe lt it would be a good opportunity for Yonis to interact withpeople to tell them how the f ield rental worked. Yon is was to take the information fromthe interested party, take the money fo r the rental, and take it to Cedarblade to bedeposited through ActiveNet. This was only to be fo r adults who wanted to use the field.He was to give the money to Cedarblade because there is no computer system at Coyle.Yonis was not supposed to be doing the money piece, just the rental scheduling. Becauseit was a light duty (i.e. not much work because there are few rentals at Currie) she felt he


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money to Cedarbiade but she gave no speci fic t ime by which it heeded to be done.However, it was her understanding that Yonis was getting the money to Cedarbiade in atimely manner. Wilson said that when she had staff meetings, she made sure to reinforce -with staff at some of the meetings to get money deposited and receipts issued in a timelymaimer. She added that she is aware that staff does not deposit money immediately andsome have money in their safes for over a week. I asked if she knew where Yonis keptany money that he would have received from rentals and she said she does not but hes apretty responsible person so she assumed he kept it in a safe place until he gave it toCedarblade.I asked why the permits were issued from Mathews rather than Luxton Park where Yonishad an office. Wilson said that Mathews is the closest park to Currie and Currie isconsidered a satellite park ofMathews, as is Riverside. Mathews supervises both parks.She said it ha s always been that way.Wilson said she never did any official training of Yonis on permitting, or even any of herstaff She assumed they already knew how to do permits, except Yonis because he isYouthline. She said she did not train Yonis on ho w to do permits because Cedarbiadewas the main contact fo r the permits. Wilson said she did coMmunicate to Cedarbladethat Yonis would get the information fo r the permits but that Cedarblade would still inputthe information into ActiveNet because he didnt know how to.The purpose of having Yonis take over the rental of Curie was to clean up thecommunication and work on the relationship with Currie/Coyle. It was a mess they weretrying to fix and she saw it as a way to build a bridge. Instead of having the Communityhave to go to Mathews which they resisted, Yonis would get the information and take itto Mathews. They were now more willing to do the permits. Wilson thought she putYonis in charge of the rentals as the end of May. -I went through some emails with Wilson:

4/23/13 email f rom Yonis to Cedarblade requesting a permit. Cedarblade wasstill doing the scheduling and permits.

5/20/13 email to Cedarblade advising Yonis now in charge of scheduling. That isaround the time she assigned Yonis to get the information for permits. Coyle hadno MPRB computer so it had to be generated somewhere else. The staff to whichshe refers in the email are the part time staff helping at Coyle. She said afier she


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going to be there, itwould be easier for Cedarbiade to get the information fo rpermits if Yonis served as a bridge to make the rental process go more smoothly.Blevins did not want to dea l with the rentals but the Community saw ~urrie &Coyle as the same thing and got upset with her, so now Coyle staff could referthem to Yonjs who would then work with Cedarblade.5/10/13 email f rom Yonis to Blevins saying that he would be running the fieldschedule-Wilson said that by then she had told Yonis to haveBlevins staff cometo him about scheduling the fields.

Wilson said Carrie is a park that seems to be run by a Commissioner and he made deals,and then when issues came up, they had to try to find a resolution within the confines ofthe deals he made. -Wilson said she did get notification that Cedarbiade was doing Currie deposits. Shethinks she was notified of two but cannot remember when. I asked where the moneywould be deposited and she said she though Currie had an account. Otherwise, it couldbe coded to Mathews and then used by Yonis foj~ Youthline. If that was the case,Cedarblade would have to track it.Wilson said she did not have Yonis trained in issuing permits because it was not part ofhis job.I asked how Yonis would know if the field was available. She said that he had his owncalendar. She gave the one that the Code 8 (Andrew something) had used when heworked for her, but Yonis said he would do his own.Wilson said she expected Yanis to do deposits in a timely manner. She said the policysays weekly, but she does not know if he would be familiar with it. She alsd said that herstaff meetings were on Thursdays, normally his day off, andhe was not required to go, soshe is not certain if he ever attended a meeting where she reminded staff to do deposits ina timely manner. However, Wilson said she expected Yonis to use his best judgment.Interview with Mohamed JimaOn Au~ist 12, 2013, I interviewed Mohamed Jama. Jama stated that he was approachedby the West Banlc Somali youth soccer teath before Memorial Da y and was told that theycould not have their game on Memorial Day because the field was permitted. Yonis hadgiven the field to outsiders and charged them for it. Jama went to talk to Yonis beforeMemorial Day, and Yonis said that he could not do anyth ing about i t because he had


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Yonis said that the Latinos were paying him 450, or 425 or something like that to usethe f ields every weekend. Jama said that Yonis reason for taking the money was BShe claimed he was using the money to pay Park Board staffs time to oversee the field..Jarna also said that Yonis tried to get Jama to keep this hush hush.Jama then delivered a petition to Commissioner Vreeland asking that Yonis be removedas the field coordinator. He ernailed Commissioners Vreeland and Erwin to tell themthere was an issue with Yonis. He said he felt that the Commissioners thought it was ajoke. He said the response he got was that they were looking into it.Jama said that there is no question in his mind that the Latinos had been paying to use thefield every weekend since Memorial Day. When I told Jama that Yonis claimed theystarted renting the field on June 29th, Jama said thats bullshit. He reiterated that there

. . U,is no doubt that the Latinos were paying to use the fields before June 29When I asked Jarna about his request to use Currie field on July l~ (he sent an email toCedarbiade on June 4, 2013, who forwarded it to Yonis), Jama said that Yonis told himthe field was already taken, ~o Jama had io cancel his event which was fo r SomaliNational Day. He said it was not true that he never followed up with Yonis.Jama said that Yonis has been telling people that everyone is out to get him, and that theyare using tribe against him. Jama said that that is not true. He also told me that Yonishas been in Currie Park in the last couple weeks and that he has been saying that he is onvacation.Letter & Petition to remove YonisJama forwarded to me the email correspondence he sent to Commissioner Vreeland,copying Commissioner Erwin and Superintendent Miller together with the twoattachments. The email is datedJune 27, 2013. Attached are a letter dated June 22, 2013and a petition signed by numerous persons from the Somali Community.The petition states that the signatories are disappointed with the way Cunie Park is runand are unbappy with the disrespectful and abusive treatment toward youth by Yonis. Itasks that he be removed from ~urrie Park an d Brian Coyle Center.The letter reads, in pertinent part:


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Youth from Cedar-Riverside do not have access to the field during Saturdays andSundays. Youth are unable to participate in soccer while the field is handed overto people from other neighborhoods.Interview with Ibsa MussaOn August 13, 2013, I interviewed Ibsa Mussa. Mussa has worked part time for the ParkBoard fo r about a month. He has worked at.the Brian Coyle Cenier for four years, andbefore that, fo r two years as a volunteer. Mussa works at the front desk.Mussa said that a long t ime ago,a Mexican man caine into the Center While Mussa wasworking the front desk. The man did not speak very good English. He pointed towardsthe Community Center and said he wanted to rent it. Mussa thought he probably meantthat he wanted to rent the field and walked outside with him to make sure that was whathe wanted. The man had 420 with him, but it only cost $400 to rent the field so hereturned 20 to the man. Mussa called Hashim, who he described as one of the.supervisors to give him the money because Mussa does not collct money. He saidHashim told him to give the money to Bosteyo, a woman from the Community, but thewoman did not show up so he gave the money to Hashim.I asked Mussa when this happened and he said Hashim has the calendar but it was at thebeginning of June.Mussa denied ever receiving any money from Hashim . H e said that the only time he eversaw the Mexican give money was that first time. But Mussa said he did ask Hashim oncewhere the money was going. Hashim did not answer him, and since Hashim is asupervisor, Mussa did not ask him any ifirther. He just assumed Hashim would give it toSarah or Larry. I asked how long after the Mexican first started renting the field he askedHashim where the money went and he said a few weeks.Mussa said that everyone started asking why the Mexicans are using the fields, since thePark Board built the fields fo r the Somali youth.Mussa told me that he knows that the Mexicans are paying fo r th& fields because he askedthe Mexican last week. He says he likes the Mexican1 because he actually organizes thegames. Otherwise, it would just be a free fo r all on the fields. The Mexican lets anyoneplay with them. Mussa says he plays with thent They pay to play in the Mexicansprogram.Mussa told me that the room in the building next to the bathrooms, with two doors


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Mussa confirmed that the Mexicans started playing around the beginning of June. Hesaid people were complaining that they were using the fields, but Mussa told them theywere paying for the field and so they got to use it.Mussa also told me that in 2012, he tried to schedule the field for his team but Sarah toldhim he couldnt and so he found somewhere else to play. He neve r asked Hashim if hecould play, but he would l ike to organize a program like the Mexican has. I told him totalk to Larry Umphrey.Interview with Ahmed IsmailOn August 15, 2013,1 interviewed Alimed Ismail by telephone. Ismail is a youth soccercoach. He has been coaching at Currie fo r the past twO years, and before that he coachedat East Phillips, work ing with Al Bangora. Last winter, he coached Youthline soccerindoors at Lux ton. In February or March, Hashim gave them the outdoor Youthlineschedule fo r Oirrie park. The girls played Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and the boysplayed Tuesday and Friday. The boys were supposed to play Saturdays but they couldntbecause a Mexican league was playing. Hashiin told him that the Mexicans were rentingthe fields. Ismail f irst learned about the rental when Ali Sallah (ph) cal led him and saidthat the Mexicans had rental money and asked if he should he take it. Ismail told him notto, and called Hashim, who told him to tell Ali to give it to Ibs.a. Ibsa was then to givethe money to Hashim. I asked Ismail when this conversation took place and he said itwas the end of April or beginning ofMay, 2013. I asked if he ever heard anything elseabout the money, and he said no. He also said he does not know where the money thatIbsa took went.I told him that Hemandez told me that they started playing May and asked if th?tsounded right. At first Ismail said it was either at the end of April or the beginning ofMay, but then recalled that his group was supposed to have a game on April 30th but theweather was bad, so he is sure the Mexicans started playing the first weekend in May.Ismail said that the Mexicans have been playing at Currie field every since then. He saidhe ha s even helped Moises a couple of times.Ismail said he was one of the organizers of the Ramadan games, and they paid 480 torent Currie field for four weeks, Fridays and Satul-days. He said Hashim told them theyhad to pay to rent the field and that the money would go to the park. Ismail personallygave Hashim the 480, and it was in cash. He thinlcs he paid Hashirn around July 15th~Hashim told h im he would give Ismail a receipt but never did. However, Hashim did


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Ismail said that everyone was cothplaining about the Mexican league using the fieldsbecause they were not part of the community but Hashim would tell everyone that theyhad a right to play because they rented the field.Ismail also told me that there is a lot of corruption at Coyle and Dirrie, and that lastwinter, Ibsa asked him to pay to play inside at Coyle, but that he later learned this pastspring that the Park Board has Coyle Friday and S?turday and so use should have beenfree, so he thinks Ibsa intended tO keep the money. Ismail did not end up paying to useCoyle and he said he was not asked to pay to use Luxton last winter: Because of hisconcerns about corruption, he now calls Larry Umphrey directly to schedule indoorgames.Findj~gHashirn Yonis has been accused of collecting money from Moise Hernandez to rentCurrie Fields, overcharging h im by 10 per hour, an d not turning the rental moneycollected prior to June 30, 2013 over to the P ark Board. H e is fhrther accused of notdepositing money received afier June 30, 2013 in a timely manner, not keeping money ina safe place, and not turning over all of the money he collected.. Finally, he is accused toasking a citizen to lie about the field rental.I find Moise Hernandez to be very credible. First , he has no reason to lie about rentingthe f ie lds from Yonis since May 4, 2013 and has been consistent in his story to both meand Sgt. Doll. He is very apologetic and clear that he does not want to get Yonis introuble. Moreover, his statement is consistent with and supported by the originalcomplaint from Mohamed Jama, the statement Jama gave to me, the letter Jania sent toCommissioner Vreeland asking that Yonis be removed from Currie Park, the statement ofIbsa Mussa ai~d the statement of Abmed Ismail. While Jatha and Mussa were not certainexactly when Hernandezs group started playing, they agree that it was well before June29~, and Ismail confirmed it was the first weekend in May.By contrast, I did not find Yonis to be credib le . He was evasive during the interviewsand the information that he provided to Cedarblade about the Hernandez permit wasconcerning enough to her to cause her to hold the 440 until she could talk to hersupervisor. Ajid, Yoniss explanation of wh y he held the 440 for several weeks, andwhy he held the l320.00.rather than bringing it to Cedarblade with the 440 raises,questions about his credibility and his judgment. F inally, and most importantly, Yonissclaim that Hernandez started renting the field on June 29th was contradicted by fourseparate people.


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rentals started and told him to tell Umphrey that the rentals were always 440. 1 believethat Yonis told Hernandez to tell Umphrey that so that Yonis could then deposit 440 tocover the first rental through Cedarblade and ensure that there were three more weeksof $440/rentals to be found at Luxton. Moreover, even if the $1320 found at Luxtonactually came from Hemandez, it was not stored in a secure manner, and both it and the$440 were kept fo r more than three weeks.I find that Yonis conduct constitutes a violation of the following Civil Service Rules:

CSC Rule 1 l.03(B)(8) Misappropriation of City property, funds or moneyCSC Rule 1.03 (B)(lO) Discourtesy to public or fellow employeesCSC Rule 1.03 (B)(13) Criminal or dishonest conduct unbecoming to a publicemployee, whether such conduct was conn-nitted while on duty or off dutyCSC Ruk l.03(B)(l5) Soliciting or receiving funds for political purposes orpersonal gain during workCSC Rule I 1.03 (B)(18) Violation df department rules, policies, probedures orCity ordinanceCSC Rule l.03(B)(l9) Knowingly making a false material statement to theCitys representative during an investigation into effiployment related misconduct.

Ann E. WaltherAugust 19 , 2013


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TENNESSEN WARNINGYou are being asked to provide infonnation as part of investigation being conducted by

the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board. You will be asked to provide infonnation that ma ybe classified as private or confidential data under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act.This infonnation is being requested as part of an employment investigation and may be used fordetermining whether discipline will be imposed upon employee(s) of the Park Board.

The information you provide may be released to: Persons authorized to have access to the information under state or federal law Persons authorized by court order to have access to the infonnation Persons to whom you have given written consent to have access to the information All individuais e~mployed b y th e Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board who have aneed and a right to know the information

Yo u are ordered to supply the requested information as a condition of your employmentwith the Park Board and your refusal to supply the requested information could result indiscipline or other adverse action being taken against you, up to and including discharge. Anyinformation which you do provide must be true and accurate.Dated: ~j 2n11-V?3 ~\+%Vt~M ~~21S

(Name)

Witness


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