Appeals court vacates asset freeze for ex-utility regulator

CLEVELAND (AP) — An appeals court in Columbus has vacated an $8 million asset freeze against a former Ohio energy regulator under scrutiny by the FBI in an investigation of a $60 million bribery scheme. A three-judge panel on the 10th District Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that a judge in Columbus improperly froze assets of Sam Randazzo. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost sought the freeze last year after Randazzo, the former chair of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, transferred a home worth $500,000 to his son and sold properties worth a combined $4.8 million. Randazzo is a defendant in a racketeering lawsuit filed by the state, Columbus and Cincinnati