David Wittig

David Wittig (b. July 29, 1955) is the former chief executive officer of Topeka, Kansas-based Westar Energy, a utility company. Born in Prairie Village, Kansas, Wittig went on to enjoy tremendous success on Wall Street as an investment banker. It was during his days as an investment banker that Wittig met his wife, Beth. In 1995, Wittig, having earned millions in New York, was asked to return to his native Kansas as an executive at Western Resources (later re-named Westar Energy). Wittig accepted the invitation, and was CEO by decade's end. He became one of Topeka's most prominent citizens, contributing to local charities and even arranging for friend Kevin Kline to perform at the local theatre. David and Beth Wittig purchased and renovated the mansion of former Kansas governor Alf Landon, the 1936 presidential nominee of the Republican Party. Wittig's remodeling of the home (appraised at roughly $2 million, compared to the median Topeka single family home value of $125,000) later became subject to much controversy.

In 2002, it was revealed that there was strong evidence suggestive of the fact that Wittig and a Topeka banker had illegal activity. The banker, Clinton Weidner, well known in Topeka for his charitable efforts, had informed Wittig that he was considering investing in a property development in Arizona and was in need of a $1.5 million loan to make a proper investment in the venture. Wittig loaned Weidner $1.5 million, and Weidner then extended Wittig's line of credit by $1.5 million. The two men faced trial in 2003, and both were found guilty as charged. In February 2004, Weidner was sentenced to six years and six months in a federal prison in North Dakota. Wittig that same month was sentenced to four years in prison and fined $1 million, yet he was preoccupied with yet another awaiting case and therefore unable to begin serving his sentence.

In 2002, Wittig and corporate strategy vice president Doug Lake resigned from Westar amid charges of looting the utility company. Prosecutors contended that the two men had used company funds for personal use (including the renovation of the Landon mansion) and used the company jet for non-business-related matters. The two men were put to trial on 39 charges in fall 2004. The tide seemed to be in favor of the prosecution, but the trial ended with a hung jury in December. A retrial with an added 40th charge was conducted during the late summer of 2005. On September 12, Wittig was convicted of 39 counts while Lake was convicted of 30; both were convicted of the 40th charge, forfeiture, later that week. Wittig faces a maximum of 455 years behind bars.