WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) - How did a bribery investigation turn into a probe of the city’s purchase of the Thompson Park Golf Course?

We’ve learned more this week about how state police became involved in investigating bribery allegations and how the bribery investigation became entangled with the purchase of the Watertown golf club, including our first look at the actual emails involved.

The email that started it all was sent on October 10, 2023, to the state Attorney General’s Office from then-mayor Jeff Smith, asking it to investigate claims of bribery.

The bribery claim came after local developer PJ Simao offered to settle his unpaid taxes, provide storage for golf carts and make donations to charity in exchange for the names of those who run an anonymous Facebook page, the Watert

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