Goshen School Board Member Turns Himself In For Allegedly Violating Campaign Finance Laws
By Liz Shepherd
InkFreeNews
Roger A. Nafziger
ELKHART — A Goshen School Board member recently turned himself in to the Elkhart County Correctional Complex for allegedly violating campaign finance laws during the November 2022 general election.
Roger A. Nafziger, 69, 319 S. 6th St., Goshen, is charged with filing a fraudulent report, a level 6 felony; and accepting a contribution made in another’s name, a class B misdemeanor.
Nafziger turned himself in on Thursday, Feb. 22.
Jose Elizalde, 53, Goshen; Mario Garber, 47, Goshen; and Andrea M. Johnson, 59, Goshen, were all arrested on the same charges on Feb. 21.
A warrant has also been issued for Allan John Kauffman, 75, Goshen, who is charged with filing a fraudulent report, a level 6 felony; and five counts of accepting a contribution made in another’s name, all class B misdemeanors.
All of the aforementioned individuals but Johnson are current school board members. Johnson ran for a school board seat, but was not elected.
In April 2023, Elkhart County’s chief deputy clerk submitted documentation for an investigation on various election and campaign finance violations to the Elkhart County Prosecutor’s Office.
According to court documents, the documentation contained “extensive information relating to a scheme facilitated by Kauffman to accept donations from a variety of unnamed individuals for the purpose of paying for a mass mailing that advocated for the election of, and the defeat of, certain specific candidates for Goshen Community School Board in the November 2022 general election.”
Kauffman then allegedly made contributions to the campaign committees for Elizalde, Nafziger, Johnson, and Garber by placing said funds into his personal account, then writing checks to the individual candidates’ campaigns.
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