Olsen says he's innocent

PROVO — The former mayor of Eagle Mountain who resigned amid allegations of financial improprieties appeared in 4th District Court Friday to face felony charges.

Brian Olsen, 35, is charged with seven third-degree felony charges of misusing public money for allegedly using city coffers to fund travel to seminars he never attended.

On Oct. 23, the Utah County Attorney's Office charged Olsen with "intentionally, knowingly or recklessly appropriat(ing) public monies to his own use or benefit or to the use or benefit of another without authority of law."

Olsen's attorney, Ken Brown, said the defense is waiting to receive evidence from the state to see the details of each allegation but said his client is innocent.

"We'll be able to prove he's not guilty," Brown said outside the courtroom. "We'll look at (evidence) carefully. We certainly believe it was not something that happened intentionally."

City employees approached Utah County prosecutors the first week of October with some concerns about travel reimbursement requests made by Olsen.

"This crime is charged as an intentional, knowing and reckless crime," said deputy Utah County attorney Chad Grunander. "I understand that Mr. Olsen is stating that this is unintentional. But we have evidence that certainly suggests otherwise. This was not a mistake. If it was a mistake, we couldn't have charged it."

Charging documents outline that from Feb. 22 until as late as Oct. 10, Olsen allegedly was requesting reimbursements for meetings and conferences that never took place. A few months earlier, Olsen admitted to lying about having a master's degree in public administration and resigned from his position on the Utah Highway Patrol.

Olsen had taken a leave of absence from the UHP while he served as Eagle Mountain's first full-time mayor.

Olsen was never arrested but served a summons to appear in court to hear his charges. He will appear in court again Jan. 5 at 10 a.m. for a waiver hearing, at which time the attorneys can discuss any potential resolution or set the case for a preliminary hearing.

During a preliminary hearing, the state must present evidence to convince a judge there is enough reason to take the case to trial.

Olsen had resigned from the mayor's office late in the afternoon on Oct. 20, citing "family and personal considerations" as the reason. City Council members scrambled to appoint an interim mayor — Councilwoman Linn Strouse — who served until Nov. 14, when the city unanimously appointed Don Richardson, a commercial loan officer for Central Bank in Orem, to serve as a part-time mayor for one year until the next public election.

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Contributing: Amy Choate-Nielsen

E-mail: sisraelsen@desnews.com