City Manager Endorsed by Convicted Felon

DESERT HOT SPRINGS, Calif. - Sept. 5, 2013 - PRLog -- DESERT HOT SPRINGS, CA – The last and final name to join a small list of endorsements is one well known to local law enforcement. His public support of a former city city manager and a councilman establish him as a public figure keeping his hand in politics; but not exactly the kind of endorsement a job applicant wants. While vanity is not enigmatic for a certain type of criminal, his true background was kept secret as he wrote to Needles city council members to endorse Rick Daniels for the job of city manager there.

The eighth member of the endorsers-eight is convicted felon Peter Chryssikos [aka Pete Chryss]. His endorsement joins six community leaders: Russ Martin, Mission Springs Water District trustee; Arden Wallum, MSWD General Manager; John Soulliere, MSWD Administrative Assistant; Tom Kirk, CVAG CEO; Scott Matas, current DHS council member and former Desert Hot Springs councilman Karl Baker [along with one private citizen] as the Endorsers Eight.

After receiving these endorsements the city of Needles city council voted unanimously to hire Rick Daniels as city manager.

Court Appointments
Peter Chryssikos was convicted of felony fraud. He is currently under indictment by the Riverside County District Attorney for five counts relating to work as an unlicensed contractor and fraudulent use of a contractor’s license and for that has an October 8 appointment in Indio court.

In addition, Chryssikos has an appointment Friday, September 6 in Small Claims court with two individuals suing him for home alarms sold them by the unlicensed contractor and claiming the the alarms systems Chryssikos sold them were not monitored.

If it seems odd that Chryssikos by himself has no provenience, Chyssikos represented himself anonymously as “a local group of business owners and local civilian leaders” and under the name “The People,” the latest alias of Chryssikos. Chryssikos manages a website he calls True Friends of DHS. Through his website he has connected himself to community leaders and political associates, weighs in on public issues to further enhancing his status as a public political voice.

Voice of “The People”
So enchanted has Chryssikos become over his new found status as a voice for “The People” that at one recent city council meeting he made himself comfortable at the table used by journalists in the back of the room, seating himself next to Erica Felci, political reporter for The Desert Sun.

Just a few months ago, the Chryssikos website announced an association with Tim Brophy-Radigan, the business partner of councilman Scott Matas. Brophy is also head of this city’s economic development committee. Ties to other city leaders date back several years.

Another Karl Baker Connection
At the core of Chryssikos rests his association with his longtime roommate of Karl Baker. Chryssikos served as campaign manager for Karl Baker’s 2011 election that he lost. More critically, they have been in each other’s pockets with payments from city contracts made to Chryssikos being deposited into the personal bank account of the councilman. Chryssikos represented or owned alarm businesses under three names that had contracts with the city of Desert Hot Springs and the city of Indio besides private citizens.

According to the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services [the state licensing agency for alarm businesses] they are frustrated about Chryssikos operating under a variety of business names, all unlicensed. Chryssikos even made the BSIS most wanted Twitter list. Stopping Chryssikos and prosecuting him for operating as an unlicensed contractor has been a longtime objective according to officials from the State Department of Consumer Affairs, Contractor’s License Bureau.

The true extent of the “local group of business owners and local civilian leaders” Chryssikos represents is a fabrication known only to himself, as there is no way to verify all the business names Chryssikos operates under. California state licensing officials admit Chryssikos is really good at what he does. After all, his felony conviction was for committing fraud and he has avoided prosecution for a number of years.

The endorsement of Rick Daniels by Peter Chryssikos is the type of flowery prose any ass kissing sycophant enjoys most. Chryssikos citing the “multitude of fond memories” he had with Rick Daniels could be a reference to the city contracts Daniels approved for the unlicensed contractor who deposited city checks bearing Daniels signature into the personal bank account opened and managed exclusively by then council member Karl Baker or it could be a reference to the work Chryssikos did on Daniels home.

Former city manager Rick Daniels hired Chryssikos to install a home theater system in his home. A business associate said the work was done in anticipation that his company would get the million dollar contract to install the video camera system in the city’s downtown and was disappointed when Chryssikos failed to close the deal. Daniels told the city council he paid Chryssikos $6,000 for the work performed and said he showed former city attorney Ruben Duran proof of payment. However, no such proof of payment was ever revealed to the public.

Chryssikos Advising Needles City Leaders
Without listing Daniels “stellar accomplishments” Chryssikos writes he is satisfied the Needles city council is aware of the former city manager’s “pedigree.”

Knowing the needs and hunger in the city of Needles, Chryssikos ingratiatingly interjects himself into the discussion promising, “Rick Daniels will use his economic experience to guide Needles forward. Gone will be the days that Needles does not get the lion’s share of tourism dollars. You will see a rebirth of the charm of beautiful Needles.”

A million dollar lawsuit by Peter Chryssikos against Morris Desert Radio for defamation is still winding its way through the courts. Key to the lawsuit is that Chryssikos claims he is not a public figure, therefore his privacy was offended to the tune of one million dollars. Radio talk show host Lee Rayburn exposed reports of Peter Chryssikos to thousands of listeners in the Coachella Valley. Chrysskos retained a local attorney who sued the radio station for harm Chryssikos claimed.

One of those claims of harm is that Chryssikos lost the friendship of Rick Daniels who Chryssikos said would no longer return his calls. This letter of endorsement dated August 8, 2013 suggests that relationship was never lost.

PDF of endorsement email from “The People” by Peter Chryssikos (http://www.desertvortex.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Pe...)