Prosecutors Seek Ban

{Louisville, Kentucky}...Wednesday, federal prosecutors asked a federal judge to ban 55 year old Paul Barth from leaving the state after learning that he had the money to pay $198,277 in restitution to the children’s charity WHAS Crusade for Children and the McMahan fire district but chose instead to buy a new home in Louisville. Prosecutors recently discovered Barth had sold a Florida condo on September 5th for $472,500 and purchased a Louisville home on October 12th with $266,500 in cash. Barth, the former fire chief of the McMahan Fire Protection District, and Crusade chairman,was sentenced Monday to 3 years and five months in federal prison and ordered to pay restitution. He had previously pleaded guilty to 15 counts of fraud and money laundering after being accused of using money intended for the Crusade to pay for personal expenses, including vacation, property taxes and Corvette Club expenses. In 2012, the Crusade awarded nearly $5.2 million in grants, ranging from $1,200 for The Rehabilitation Center to $198,000 to the Kosair Children’s Hospital Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory.