Whistleblower in railroad campaign scandal steps forward

Stacie Long is an unlikely whistleblower, but investigators with the Government Accountability Board (GAB) and Milwaukee County District Attorney’s office said their case against William Gardner might never have happened if not for her.
Gardner, owner of Wisconsin & Southern Railroad, was charged with two felony counts of unlawful political contributions.
Investigators said Gardner had his employees give tens of thousands of dollars to Gov. Scott Walker’s Campaign in 2009 and 2010 and he reimbursed them with money from the Railroad Company.
In an exclusive interview with BizTimes media partner Channel 12-WISN News, Long said, "After talking to people about the contributions, I realized it was illegal, and I wasn’t going to be a part of it.”
Long said she was angry at Gardner because he wouldn’t give her back some of her belongings after they broke up, so she called the Government Accountability Board and told them he was making the illegal contributions.
Investigators said Walker’s campaign had no idea the money was tainted and once they found out, they gave it to charity.
Long, who is  47 years old, said she met the 63-year-old Gardner a few years ago on the website SugarDaddyForMe.com.
To view the Channel 12 webcast of the story, click here.
– BizTimes Milwaukee