Town Public Works director faces charges on car sale in wake of divorce

FRONT ROYAL – A preliminary hearing date of February 27, at 2 p.m. has been set in a felony case revolving around the sale of a personal vehicle by a town employee in the wake of a recent divorce.

Town of Front Royal Public Works Director Carl James “Jimmy” Hannigan Jr. is charged with three counts related to alleged forgery of part of a DMV title and transfer of that title in September of last year. Hannigan was present in Warren County General District Court for the 10 a.m. Wednesday, January 24 docket but was not called for any testimony. After consulting with Hannigan, who declined comment following the brief hearing, his attorney Eric Wiseley addressed his client’s situation.

“Mr. Hannigan went through a nasty divorce last year, and his wife was not happy with the Court’s decision regarding an automobile that belonged to my client. Not happy with the Court’s decision, she filed criminal charges that are a bit overblown. Police investigators handled the matter very professionally, and we look forward to clearing this up before the court.

“At no time did Mr. Hannigan have any intent to defraud anyone, or otherwise act in an inappropriate manner with regard to this car or anything else. I can’t say much more at this time, because for now our focus is on clearing my client’s good name.”

According to Wiseley the vehicle in question was a 1998 Honda C-RV with about 200,000 miles on it.