Albany County District Attorney Soares Under Fire

Albany County District Attorney David Soares, who was last seen botching a major steroid distribution investigation and whitewashing the investigation into former Governor Eliot Spitzer's dirty tricks, is under fire for losing thousands of dollars seized in criminal cases and using state money to pay for personal purposes. The Albany Democrat should be in a heap of trouble:

A detailed audit, to be released today by Albany County Comptroller Michael Connors, also found Soares illegally used $62,155 in state crime-fighting funds to pay daily parking fees for 20 favored employees.

"There was no explanation or justification presented in the record to substantiate the value of such parking expenses to the goal of prosecuting cases and depriving criminals of the profits of their illegal activities," the audit noted, according to a draft copy obtained by The Post.

According to the audit, Soares also illegally or improperly:

* Used $18,000 in crime-fighting funds to buy and distribute T-shirts to community youth programs, which Albany activists say are being mobilized to help the DA win re-election.

* Circumvented legally required competitive bidding procedures for the purchase of nearly $30,000 worth of computers and office equipment.

* Spent $7,297.27 on flashlights and whistles "emblazoned with the words 'P. David Soares: Your Albany County DA' " that were given to community groups.

That's your tax dollars at work folks. Soares, who fiddled while Eliot Spitzer was busy using state troopers for investigating Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno, a Republican for use of state aircraft, didn't actively and aggressively pursue the investigation. While several of Spitzer's underlings are facing investigations, Spitzer himself has not been a focus, despite the fact that he directed his people to launch the attack on Bruno.