Lefko had been talking with San Antonio Observer staff to garner support for the county plan to revitalize the Frost Bank Center grounds.
Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai fired one of his top staffers in December over flirtatious texts the staffer sent to the publisher of an East Side newspaper — messages the publisher said made her feel 'creeped out,' according to county documents and interviews conducted by the San Antonio Express-News .
Jim Lefko, Sakai’s communications director, had been talking with staff of the San Antonio Observer, a weekly news tabloid, in an effort to generate support for a plan to revitalize the grounds of the county-owned Freeman Coliseum on the East Side. In November, Observer CEO Waseem Ali sent Lefko an email expressing concern about texts Lefko had sent to Stephanie Zarriello, Ali's wife and the weekly's publisher. Lefko called her a 'pretty lady,' asked her to send him a photo of herself 'all dolled up' and suggested they meet for drinks because he was a 'bachelor for the weekend,' according to a county investigator's report and text messages, copies of which Zarriello gave to the Express-News. The messages were part of an Oct. 23 text exchange. After Sakai heard about the texts, he requested assistance from the county ombudsman, an independent official who investigates complaints about county employees. The ombudsman interviewed Lefko, 67, but he refused to turn over his text messages. Lefko and Zarriello communicated over the course of three months and met twice — once at Lefko's office and again at a downtown bar. Their exchanges included debates over the county’s East Side plan, Lefko’s suggestion that he could arrange a ceremonial proclamation honoring the Observer and his invitation for Zarriello to sit next to him at a Commissioners Court meeting. Ombudsman Allison Highley's four-page report was based on her Dec. 1 interview with Lefko and a review of emails between Lefko, Zarriello and Ali. She did not review the text messages between Lefko and Zarriello. The report established a timeline of communications and meetings between the two and includes details from several emails, including Ali's Nov. 7 email to Lefko. 'Mr. Lefko stated that, looking back, he regretted many of his actions and would have done things differently,' Highley said at the end of her report. Highley did not recommend any specific disciplinary action. The ombudsman typically does not recommend discipline, leaving that decision to an employee's managers, a county spokesperson said. Sakai fired Lefko on Dec. 8. 'The judge has not and will not ever put up with that behavior, and it was quite obvious once we started asking questions that the only solution was termination,' said Matthew Polanco, Sakai's chief of staff. 'The judge will not allow that behavior from anyone in the county, especially not his staff.' ALSO READ: Jail deaths, overcrowding and new jail loom over Nirenberg–Sakai race Lefko, a former sports editor at the Express-News, said his texts had been 'misconstrued.' He said his only goal was to discuss the upcoming vote on a new San Antonio Spurs arena and Freeman Coliseum project, as he did with many other news outlets in town. 'I was under no obligation to share my texts , and did not believe I had done anything wrong although in hindsight I could have used better judgment,' he said in a statement. 'Bachelor for the weekend' Lefko first contacted Zarriello in July 2025 about the county’s plan to use tax dollars to revitalize the Freeman Coliseum, the neighboring Frost Bank Center and surrounding grounds. The upgrades will allow the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo to host events year-round. The proposal, which voters approved in November, was part of Sakai’s push to keep the county-owned site active and economically viable if the Spurs move from the Frost Bank Center to a planned downtown arena. Lefko and Zarriello met at his office in July, along with Zarriello's daughter, and exchanged emails throughout August and September about the county potentially advertising in the Observer. Sakai’s office bought one $750 advertisement in the paper to promote an October community meeting it was holding at the Freeman Coliseum about the improvement plan. In early October, Lefko and Zarriello met at Sojourn Trading Co., a West Houston Street bar, for drinks. ALSO READ: Ken Paxton sues Bexar County for paying for legal assistance for immigrants Two weeks later, they texted again, and Zarriello said they should meet again for happy hour some time. Lefko suggested the following weekend because he was temporarily a 'bachelor' since his wife was out of town, he told the ombudsman. Lefko said in his statement he wanted to meet again because Zarriello had picked up the tab last time around, and he wanted to make things even. Later, Lefko sent Zarriello a selfie of himself attending an Oct. 23 meeting with Sakai and mayors of suburban cities in the ornate Double Height Courtroom, where Commissioners Court meets every other Tuesday. Lefko told the ombudsman that the photo was 'intended to boost her confidence in her own appearance.' 'What are you wearing today? Selfie in return?' Lefko texted Zarriello. 'How about a recent pic of you all Dolled up?' he asked again minutes later, calling Zarriello a 'beautiful woman' and asking why she wouldn’t 'want to have pics of yourself looking pretty.' Zarriello was friendly throughout the exchange, cracking a joke about how she declined to send a photo because she hadn't brushed her hair, the text messages show. SUBSCRIBE: For unlimited digital access and a paywall-free experience, purchase a digital subscription. The two had made plans to meet again on a Saturday, but Zarriello canceled because she had a cough, according to Highley's report. 'I didn't have a cough. I didn’t want to go,' Zarriello said in an interview. 'I’m totally creeped out.' Lefko refused to turn over the messages to Highley even after the ombudsman asked 'several times,' the report said. Highley warned Lefko that not turning them over could result in discipline for not cooperating and 'might lead to a presumption that the evidence would have been unfavorable to his position.' Lefko defended his actions in his interview with Highley. He told her Zarriello was 'a little flirty in a fun, light way.' He denied that he was trying to become romantically involved with her. Lefko noted that Ali, her husband, was a former college basketball player and said 'you would have to be a fool to hit on his wife.' 'I'm the same person to everybody,' Zarriello told the Express-News. 'There won't be one person that won't say, 'Yeah, Stephanie is bubbly.' But going to say flirty?' The report also noted that a Bexar County employee had previously alerted the ombudsman to 'several comments' Lefko made about her 'physical attractiveness' and to an invitation to attend a sporting event alone with him. The employee did not pursue a formal complaint after rejecting Lefko's advances, and he 'did not persist,' the report said. 'I was not made aware of any other complaints and have attended many sporting events with people of both genders over the years,' Lefko said in his statement to the Express-News. ALSO READ: 'Unprofessional conduct' — Mayor Jones under investigation for allegedly berating Councilwoman Kaur In October, the Observer published an editorial urging its readers to vote 'no' on spending tax dollars on a Spurs arena and the redevelopment of the Frost Bank Center grounds because 'a city that loves its Spurs shouldn't have to go broke proving it.' Three days after the Nov. 4 election, Ali sent an email to Lefko threatening to publish in the Observer all of the text messages between Lefko and Zarriello. He also alerted Precinct 4 Commissioner Tommy Calvert, who forwarded the information to Sakai. Sakai asked Highley to help look into the matter. Calvert, who represents the East Side, declined to comment. He used to write a column for the Observer, and his father, community organizer T.C. Calvert, was president of the paper for a decade. Lefko, a longtime sports journalist in both San Antonio and Indianapolis, had worked for Sakai since the county judge took office in 2023. Lefko was paid more than $80,000 a year. Bexar County created the ombudsman's office in 2020 to investigate alleged misconduct by employees and act as an intermediary in staff disputes. The ombudsman did not interview Zarriello or Ali during her investigation. Highley rarely speaks with people outside county government for investigations, a county spokesperson said. The ombudsman sometimes recommends training for employees, but does not tell managers whether to fire or suspend someone, the spokesperson said.
San Antonio Express-News East Side Commissioners Court San Antonio Spurs Jim Lefko Stephanie Zarriello Peter Sakai Waseem Ali Allison Highley Tommy Calvert T.C. Matthew Polanco Jones Stephanie Ken Paxton Councilwoman Kaur Bexar County East Side Freeman Coliseum Double Height Courtroom Frost Bank Center West Houston Street San Antonio Indianapolis San Antonio Stock Show Sojourn Trading Co. Observer Nirenberg Rodeo
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Sen. Jim Banks Blames Democrats' ICE Stance for Deaths, Calls for Stricter Immigration EnforcementSenator Jim Banks (R-IN) criticizes Democrats for their stance on ICE, connecting it to deaths caused by illegal immigrants, particularly truck drivers, and calls for stricter immigration enforcement, blaming lax laws and the Biden administration's CBP One app.
Read more »
Democratic candidates Nirenberg, Sakai face off in Bexar County judge debateThe Democratic candidates for Bexar County judge took part in another debate Tuesday, a week before early voting begins.
Read more »
Bexar County judge contenders rewrite history, talk over each other at fiery debateIn a one-hour debate Tuesday, Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai and challenger Ron Nirenberg talked over one another, rewrote history.
Read more »
Jim Rossman: Hidden phone setting turns sister’s screen into a ‘photo negative’Smart Invert reverses the colors of the display except for images, media and some apps that use dark color styles.
Read more »
No winners in Browns’ messy divorce with Jim Schwartz — Jimmy WatkinsJim Schwartz walked away after feeling betrayed, Todd Monken lost built-in credibility with players, and the Browns failed to keep the architect of their fourth-ranked defense.
Read more »
Sakai and Nirenberg stake out differences in Tuesday’s bruising Bexar County Judge debateFormer San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg and current Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai face off at Stable Hall on Tuesday. The Democratic contenders for Bexar
Read more »