Gwinnett County developer Mark Gary on Monday became the fourth person to plead guilty in an ongoing federal corruption probe, admitting he paid former County Commissioner Shirley Lasseter for her vote on a waste transfer station.
But in his first public statement about the bribe, Gary told U.S. District Judge Charles Pannell Jr. that the waste transfer station was Lasseter’s idea. He said she asked him to develop the transfer station and pressed him for money in exchange for her vote on the project.
“I thought about it and made a bad decision,” Gary told the judge.
Gary pleaded guilty to bribery, admitting he paid Lasseter and her son, John Fanning, $30,000 in chips from an out-of-state casino for her vote on the $4 million waste transfer station he planned to develop off Winder Highway. It was the latest development in the investigation, which already has led to guilty pleas by Lasseter, Fanning and Hall County businessman Carl “Skip” Cain.
The corruption scandal, coupled with a pending unrelated bribery case against ex-county commissioner Kevin Kenerly, has put an unflattering spotlight on a county that has long prided itself for fostering business growth.
“Today’s guilty plea shows that paying off a public official is a losing bet,” United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said Monday of the Gary plea. “Gwinnett County’s approval of competing real estate developments is not a game in which votes are for sale to the highest bidder. We will continue to aggressively pursue business people who corrupt the system by bribing public officials.”
In May Lasseter admitted she accepted $36,500 from an undercover FBI agent in exchange for her vote on a Boggs Road real estate development. Fanning and Cain admitted they helped arrange the bribe and also pleaded guilty to transporting what they believed to be 4 kilograms of cocaine.
Pannel recently sentenced Lasseter to 33 months in prison, while Fanning and Cain got 57-month sentences.
All four have been cooperating with federal investigators. Lasseter’s cooperation led to the charge against Gary last month.
Gary sought county approval for the waste transfer station in October 2008 - before Lasseter had taken office. On Monday he told Pannell that Lasseter had approached him and asked him to develop the project.
Though he usually develops assisted-living homes, Gary agreed. Within a few days of taking office in January 2009, Lasseter appointed Gary to the county planning commission.
Gary told Pannell he spent a large amount of his own money on the project. “(Lasseter) then came to me and said, you need to pay me,” Gary testified.
Court records show Gary, Lasseter and Fanning - a member of the county zoning appeals board - discussed a price of up to $100,000 for Lasseter’s vote.
The commission approved the station on April 28, 2009, with Lasseter voting in favor. The following June Gary paid Fanning $30,000 in casino chips. Fanning lost some of the money gambling but shared the rest with his mother, Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Bly told the judge.
Bly said Lasseter tried to get Gary to pay more, but he refused.
Before accepting Gary’s guilty plea, Pannell quizzed him about his actions. “The whole reason you did it was the profit motive. Correct?” Pannell asked.
“Yes, sir,” Gary replied.
Gary will be sentenced Jan. 3. He could face up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. But prosecutors have recommended a reduced sentence based on his cooperation.
“Mark Gary’s been trying to do the best he can to help the FBI clean up corruption in Gwinnett County,” his attorney, Paul Kish, said after the hearing.
About the Author
