He testified for two-and-a-half hours, then answered questions grand jurors submitted to prosecutors.

“I gave them documents to support what I had to say and told them more of what I believed to be true,” including information about how tax dollars in huge, unaudited legislative accounts get used, Shaffer told me during a lengthy interview.

His testimony set off sparks that led to a firestorm now threatening to engulf more political careers than maybe anything else in state history.

Shaffer gave up his boss, former Beaver County Rep. Frank LaGrotta, D-Ellwood City, for hiring “ghost” employees.