Michael Goins was taken into custody Tuesday afternoon by Pasco police detectives after apparently what was a lengthy period of surveillance and investigation.

The Downtown Pasco Development Authority (DPDA) cooperated with the investigation said officials, and Goins, who lives in Richland, had been being watched for some time.

Officials say he allegedly embezzled money for a "long period of time."  Authority officials said he will not remain in that Executive Director position any more, and said they only learned of the embezzlement allegations and investigation recently.

Goins came to Pasco in 2013 from Philadelphia. He was initially successful in his efforts to bring back the Fiery Foods Festival and the surge of taco and food vendor trucks also were developed under his watch.

The amount of money allegedly embezzled is not yet known.  He is the second such Franklin County official to come under these accusations. Former Franklin County public works and accounting director Dennis Huston is in prison for stealing some $2.8 million dollars over 22 years to support drug and gambling addictions.

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