Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst is accusing a longtime political adviser of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from his campaign account.
The Dewhurst state campaign committee — in amended finance reports — blamed Kenneth "Buddy" Barfield for "misappropriation of committee funds." The campaign lowered the cash on hand reported from about $777,000 to $7,000.
Barfield ran Dewhurst's re-election campaign in 2010 and his failed run for U.S. Senate this year.
Spokesman Rob Johnson says authorities have been contacted. He says Dewhurst is shocked that "a former senior trusted adviser would steal from the campaign account for his own personal gain."
Barfield did not return messages from the newspaper or The Associated Press.
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Information from: The Dallas Morning News, http://www.dallasnews.com
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.