According to the district attorney’s office, during the November 2021 election, hundreds of voters in Lehigh County broke the law by dropping off multiple mail-in ballots at a county-approved drop box.
Following a complaint by Joe Vichot, chairman of the Lehigh County Republican Committee on Jan. 20, Martin’s staff launched an investigation.
On Monday, Martin made the findings public.
Martin said detectives watched video surveillance of five ballot boxes located throughout the county. At least 288 persons were found to have left multiple ballots in the drop boxes, according to the probe.
Two LCGC cameras captured a person of interest (POI) inserting several ballots into a ballot drop box on October 28, 2021, around 7:45 p.m. ET.
On March 30, 2022, the Pennsylvania Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee held a hearing on drop boxes and alleged ballot trafficking in the November 2021 election in Lehigh County. The footage of ballot trafficking was shown to the committee members as evidence.
More details from WFMZ report:
Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin said Monday there were likely hundreds of instances where people deposited more than one ballot into drop boxes between Oct. 18 and election day, Nov. 2, 2021.
Joe Vichot, Chairman of the Lehigh County Republican Committee, submitted correspondence on Jan. 20., 2022 to Deputy County Solicitor, Sarah Murray, regarding alleged multiple ballots deposited at drop boxes during the 2021 November election, according to a news release from the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office.
On Feb. 1, 2022, the Election Board of Lehigh County through Deputy Solicitor Murray referred the matter to the District Attorney for investigation. Martin said he referred the matter to Chief County Detective Michael J. Millan, who assigned County Detectives Richard G. Heffelfinger, Steven C. Furlong and Robert V. Egan to the investigation.
Based upon the investigation, Martin said he found that there were likely hundreds of instances where people deposited more than one ballot into drop boxes established for receipt of ballots between Oct. 18 and election day, Nov. 2, 2021. Over the time that drop boxes were in place 7,196 ballots were deposited and counted.
Based upon the review by the detectives, at least 288 people deposited more than one ballot in the various drop boxes, all of which were under video surveillance, according to the news release from the DA’s office.
This is a violation of the provisions of the Election Code, which require that each voter deposit/deliver only their own ballot.
“Based upon the sampling, it is clear that many more than just those observed deposited more than one ballot,” Martin said.
There was only one instance where it appears that more than two ballots were deposited; in that case, either five or six were deposited, Martin said. That person cannot be identified.
Martin said the vast majority of others captured on video depositing their ballots in drop boxes also cannot be identified. More than 14,800 ballots were delivered through the U.S. mail, and no video exists as to these, the DA’s office said.
There will be no prosecution brought as a result of the investigation “because to prosecute those few whose identity can be proven would be unfair and unjust given the much larger numbers who cannot be identified and who also deposited multiple ballots,” Martin said.
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Sources: Thegatewaypundit, Wfmz, Thekingofstocks