A grand jury has indicted former Gwinnett County sheriff’s Maj. Nick Neal, who is accused of using his position for personal financial gain.
Neal faces 14 charges, including selling personal property to the county government, giving false statements, identity fraud and theft.
If convicted, Neal could be sentenced to about 60 years, District Attorney Danny Porter said.
Porter asked the GBI to investigate in spring 2012 after getting complaints alleging Neal was involved in a Sugar Hill towing company. Neal was accused of stealing tow trucks, and later lied to a GBI agent about his involvement in the company, Porter said.
During the investigation, the GBI discovered that Neal was a partner in a company that sold more than $11,000 worth of brake supplies to the county, Porter said.
It is illegal for a county employee to sell more than $800 worth of personal property to the county in a calendar year, Porter said.
The investigation also found that Neal had illegally used a computer to transfer $400 of county money to pay a personal credit card bill, Porter said.
The district attorney said that in the past 20 years, he has launched at least five investigations into alleged misconduct by Neal within the sheriff’s department. Porter said he has investigated allegations that Neal used sheriff’s deputies to collect rent on his Gwinnett property, and that he harbored a fugitive to work in his Lawrenceville barber shop. None of the previous investigations led to indictments.
Neal was indicted Wednesday and is expected to turn himself in Monday morning, Porter said.
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