A former Las Vegas lawman is once again facing criminal charges.
Former Las Vegas Township Constable John Bonaventura was indicted Wednesday by a grand jury. He's accused of stealing from taxpayers and illegally recording phone calls involving lawyers and a district court judge.
The new charges come in the wake of prior controversy.
In 2015, Bonaventura was accused of assaulting his wife and forcing her to write him a nearly $10,000 check. He was found guilty of disorderly conduct in that case, which is now closed.
But this new indictment brings fresh trouble.
According to the indictment, Bonaventura is facing 4 felony counts of interception of wire communications. One of those calls was with former Clark County Commissioner Tom Collins and another with District Court Judge Rob Bare.
Bonaventura is also charged with theft for giving an unauthorized raise to a constable employee, in part to repay a personal debt. The timeline in the indictment shows that may have cost county taxpayers more than $50,000.
He's also charged with misconduct of a public officer.
Clark County Commissioners voted to abolish the Constable's office in 2013 due to controversy surrounding Bonaventura, including allegations he was illegally recording phone calls. Las Vegas police took over operations of the Las Vegas Township Constable's office in January 2015 after Bonaventura's term expired.
