Did councilman trade sex for strip club deal? Cops ‘never informed’ of allegations
An allegation that a Richland County Council member received sexual favors in exchange for a deal favorable to a local strip club apparently was never investigated by law enforcement, according to three local and state agencies.
Former county administrator Gerald Seals said that in 2016 he received the letter purportedly written by a dancer from Platinum Plus strip club. The letter was signed by “Diamond and friends.” Seals said he and County Council directed county attorney Larry Smith at the time to forward that letter to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.
But SLED said it has no available record of that letter or of an investigation into its allegations. Neither do the Richland County Sheriff’s Department or the state Attorney General’s Office, according to those agencies.
Generally, when SLED receives information claiming criminal activity, “everything is reviewed based on its merits” and sent to the appropriate area within the organization, spokesman Tommy Crosby said.
Additionally, “The Richland County Sheriff’s Department was never informed of the Platinum Plus letter and never investigated allegations, as a result,” a spokesperson said.
Smith, reached by phone Thursday afternoon, refused to answer questions about any directives he may have received and would not say if he sent the letter to law enforcement.
“I don’t have any comments regarding it,” he said.
A longtime attorney for the since-closed Platinum Plus said he had never heard of such a letter and doubted its authenticity.
The typed letter, dated Dec. 1, 2010, was obtained by The State newspaper this week after Richland County Councilwoman Dalhi Myers referenced it in a letter of her own. Myers’ letter criticized council members’ behavior toward Seals.
In the letter she wrote this week, Myers claimed some council members had retaliated against Seals after the letter about Platinum Plus was shared with SLED. She declined to comment to The State regarding the Platinum Plus letter, saying her memo was intended to remain confidential.
The context of the Platinum Plus letter dates back to the early 2010s, when the county was in a dispute with the club over its operation near Greystone Boulevard. At the time, the county was struggling to enforce zoning laws that prohibit sexually oriented businesses from operating within 1,000 feet of churches, homes, schools and parks.
The club and others had been ordered to shut down, move or change their business by 2011. But Platinum Plus didn’t do that.
With the county seeking to shut down Platinum Plus for good, the club countered that it would open in a new, more visible location on Bluff Road, near Williams-Brice Stadium.
In turn, the county struck a deal with Platinum Plus. The strip club could remain open in the Greystone area with some conditions: Its owner would shut down a fellow strip club, Heartbreakers, and the owner would agree to never open a sexually oriented business on the Bluff Road property.
That deal was reported by The State in 2012.
The newly revealed letter — signed by “Diamond and friends” — suggests there might have been more to the deal that was not publicly known.
Though the letter was dated Dec. 1, 2010, it was received by Seals and other county officials in November 2016, according to Seals. It is unclear why there is a discrepancy in the dating of the letter and the time Seals received it.
The one-page, typed letter is addressed “Dear Council members,” and it goes on to say:
“I am writing this letter to you, not as a threat because we do not do those things and it would be illegal. It is my understanding that county council is planning to reopen Platinum Plus business permit case. If you remember you all decided not to harass any other SOB”s (sexually oriented businesses) so as to not draw attention. It is my understanding that council members were aware of the deal and agreed to it. So please do not try to go back on the agreement or try to affect our business because we need our jobs.”
In the following paragraph, the letter claims that “exotic dancers … provided free services” to a council member “and his friends because that was part of the deal.”
The letter also claims two other council members knew about the sexual favors and the deal.
The State is not identifying the council members named in the letter because its source could not be determined.
Harry Heizer Jr., an attorney who represented Platinum Plus for many years, said Thursday he has “never heard of or seen that letter.”
When the contents of the letter were described to him, Heizer said, “I can tell you if it said we did special things for one of the council members, that’s inaccurate.”
“When we were open, I would like to think we had a pretty good relationship with Richland County, with the Sheriff’s Department and County Council,” Heizer said. “So if somebody got a letter like that, I would think they would have called it to our attention and asked us about it.
“The county attorney (Larry Smith) knew that I represented Platinum Plus, so if he would have gotten such a letter, I would think he would have told me about it.”
As to the identity of “Diamond and friends,” Heizer said, “Over the last 20-some years, I’m sure there has been more than one entertainer who used the name Diamond.”
Details of the Platinum Plus letter also were reported by The Post & Courier on Thursday.
Despite questions about the authenticity of the letter, Seals told The State on Wednesday that he felt the letter was legitimate and was surprised to learn local law enforcement didn’t investigate.
Seals said he discussed the letter privately with the council members named in it and with the council chairperson at the time, Joyce Dickerson. He later made a presentation to the full council in a closed-door session in December 2016 where he addressed the letter and the status of Platinum Plus’ business, records obtained by The State show.
Efforts by The State to reach Dickerson this week were unsuccessful.
After receiving the letter from “Diamond and friends,” Seals said he also discovered a memo from a county assistant, who was later fired, instructing county staff to not collect business license fees from the club. Seals later confirmed that Platinum Plus had a contract with Richland County that allowed the business to operate without meeting zoning requirements.
He said he demanded the club immediately pay permit fees, as every business in the county is required to do.
Seals said he told the council the questionable letter alleges “flat-out corruption” and that he had a responsibility to share it with law enforcement based on the seriousness of the claims.
The council members named in the letter denied its allegations, Seals said.
Even if the letter was fake, he said, the council’s decision to approve an illegal contract that offered preferential treatment to one business is suspicious and constitutes malfeasance and misfeasance.
In January 2018, Platinum Plus burned down and never reopened. Heizer said the cause of the fire was a frayed electrical wire. The Richland County Fire Marshal said there was no evidence of arson.
In April 2018, six members of County Council voted, in a surprise move, to fire Seals.
A month later, County Council members reached a $1 million settlement with Seals, which multiple council members have said was offered to protect the county from potential legal action by Seals.
Seals said he believes the club debacle was one of the main reasons council members voted to fire him.
“I don’t think anybody can debate that the tone became more antagonist and more hostile” after the letter surfaced, he said.
This story was originally published January 10, 2020 at 10:40 AM.
