Mechanicsville woman charged with trying to extort anti-tax group

© Gazette Communications

A woman who accused a major player in Iowa politics of illegal campaign contributions has been charged with attempting to extort $1 million from Iowans for Tax Relief and its co-founder, David Stanley of Muscatine.

Mary Kathryn Moravek, 51, of Mechanicsville, was arrested Tuesday afternoon when she met with an undercover detective who she thought was delivering a $30,000 payment from Stanley and Iowans for Tax Relief in exchange for her silence.

Moravek claims she has witnessed illegal campaign contributions being made by at least one Iowans for Tax Relief employee over a period of at least five years.

Moravek told The Gazette on Tuesday morning she was going to file a complaint with the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board alleging that Cloyd “Robbie” Robinson of Cedar Rapids, a lobbyist for the taxpayers group, was reimbursed by the group for checks he wrote to state and municipal political candidates.

Moravek said she witnessed Robinson writing the checks and then cashing checks from Iowans for Tax Relief for the same amounts.

Robinson, a former Democratic legislator, and Ed Failor Jr. of Muscatine, the president for Iowans for Tax Relief, denied any wrongdoing.

The allegations “are ridiculous. They are false,” Failor said.

“She's dead wrong,” said Robinson, who said he voluntarily resigned as a lobbyist for Iowans for Tax Relief as a result of allegations Moravek was making about his personal and professional conduct.

Moravek told The Gazette on Tuesday morning she was going public with her allegations, at least in part, because an eight-year affair with Robinson had ended.

“This is a case of a woman trying to clear the air,” Moravek said. “Robbie has become distant to me. I told Robbie it's time to let David (Stanley) know who you are, what you're doing and how you're doing it.

“David is a very strong Methodist and would never go for any of it,” she said, claiming Iowans for Tax Relief fired Robinson on Monday.

Robinson, who is married, denied the affair, saying Moravek has made such claims in the past, even telling people he had bought her an engagement ring.

Over the years, he said, he has tried to help Moravek, a Democrat who was a lobbyist for the Iowa Commission for People with Disabilities. Recently, however, he tried to break off contact with Moravek.

Her charges and the alleged extortion, he said, are “a combination of me telling her that I didn't want to see her because of her lies, and she's desperate.”

Robinson said he voluntarily resigned from Iowans for Tax Relief. Failor on Tuesday said only that Robinson is no longer with the organization.

Failor said Iowans for Tax Relief - which made contributions to mostly Republican candidates of more than $400,000 last year - received a letter from Moravek spelling out the allegations and threatening to go to authorities unless she was paid $1 million.

“We didn't hesitate. We immediately contacted law enforcement and they did a sting,” he said.

According to the Muscatine County Attorney Gary Allison, Stanley had a phone conversation with Moravek that was monitored by law enforcement. During that conversation, Moravek agreed to accept $30,000 in exchange for dropping the allegations of wrongful conduct, he said.

After telling The Gazette on Tuesday morning she was going to lodge the ethics complaints, Moravek called back later that morning to say she was no longer interested in publicizing her claims because Stanley had agreed to a “sizable” cash settlement.

“He's buying my silence because he can't let any of this get out,” Moravek said.

According to the criminal complaint, Moravek agreed to meet two Iowans for Tax Relief employees to accept the payment and sign a statement denying knowledge of any wrongful conduct by the group.

About 1 p.m., Moravek met with an undercover Muscatine County Sheriff's deputy and was arrested without incident, County Attorney Allison said.

She was charged with extortion, a Class D felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $7,500 fine, and transported to the Muscatine County Jail, where she remained last night.