Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd Death Amid Bribery Inquiry

By way of contacting multiple insiders, courthouse workers and people who know . . . Right now we share more insight, perspective and chatter into a tragic local demise. 

The basics . . . 

Before his suicide prosecutor Eric Zahnd was in the midst of an investigation for bribery and questionable election season 'Honest Services' favor trading. 

Here's some of what we know . . . 

Multiple sources have confirmed that the Prosecutor was "not himself" over the past few years. His father had suffered serious health issues and his appearance had radically transformed. 

Amid uncharacteristic political battles, insiders tell us that Zahnd had struggled to maintain his calm and professional demeanor and often engaged in uncharacteristic, aggressive behavior.

Again . . . A great deal of this story seems to connect to a post we filed back in July.     

However . . . 

The personal deets get more serious when it comes to ALLEGED offers of payback and sketchy arrangements to potential/imagined political rivals . . . The very same kind of thing that might seem harmless to political neophytes or local government cynics BUT has sparked federal investigation in nearby Jackson County. 

As of this reporting . . . Most of the sketchy actions as a public official now become part of the public record since his demise . . . There is already a electronic paper trail that at least two local news organizations are unpacking and might soon report. 

Brief TKC aside . . .

A shocking deet that might soon be revealed is that Zahnd used his COUNTY E-MAIL to make sketchy political ploys that sparked serious questions from colleagues . . . OF COURSE that's a rookie mistake and something that makes it obvious that Zahnd wasn't thinking clearly in his last days.   

More important to www.TonysKansasCity.com readers and Northland voters is that inquiries don't end with Zahnd. 

Nobody will ever know EXACTLY why he took his own life but the implications of his death will continue to resonate across the metro and the Platte County courthouse as more the deets of the situation continue to unfold.  

Developing . . .