Current:Home > StocksGeorgia governor suspends Newton County commissioner accused of taking kickback-DB Wealth Institute B2 Expert Reviews
Georgia governor suspends Newton County commissioner accused of taking kickback
View Date:2024-12-23 22:37:44
COVINGTON, Ga. (AP) — Gov. Brian Kemp has suspended the chairman of a suburban Atlanta county commission after the official was indicted on charges alleging he took a kickback on a real estate deal.
Kemp on Thursday suspended Newton County Commission Chairman Marcello Banes from office until the case is resolved or his term runs out. That also means the county won’t pay Banes’ salary for the suspension period unless he is cleared of the charges
Banes and Newton County Commissioner-elect Stephanie Lindsey were both indicted in June on federal money laundering charges related to the 2019 sale of property by an economic development agency.
The indictment alleges that Banes, who was a voting member of the Joint Development Authority of Jasper, Newton, Morgan and Walton counties, hid a deal for the buyer of the property to pay a $150,000 commission to Lindsey.
The company isn’t named in the indictment, but Newton County property records show Prism Investments in March 2019 paid $3 million for the land described in court papers.
U.S. Attorney Ryan Buchanan has said the company didn’t know Banes was going to get a kickback and wouldn’t have paid Lindsey if it had known. The authority has also said it knew of no illegal activity.
Bank records show Lindsey in turn passed $100,000 of the money to Banes. The indictment alleges Banes used $84,000 of the money to buy a house, and that Lindsey later wrote a $28,000 check for basement and foundation work on Banes’ new house.
Banes is also charged with lying to FBI agents about Lindsey’s involvement, while Lindsey is charged with filing false tax returns that didn’t acknowledge that she or her real estate agency had received the $150,000.
Both Banes and Lindsey have pleaded not guilty and are free on bail. A trial date hasn’t been set.
Banes said in a statement after he was indicted that he looks forward “to clearing my name and demonstrating my good character,” pledging he would keep working for Newton County residents and that “I am not going anywhere.”
Lindsey said in a statement that she looks “forward to the truth coming out in court. That truth is, as an attorney and a public servant of this county, I would not knowingly break any law.”
Both Banes and Lindsey won Democratic primaries for Newton County Commission earlier this year and face no Republican opponent in November. Banes is in line for another term as the commission’s leader and Lindsey in line for a district commission seat. The charges mean Kemp could have to suspend each when their new terms begin on Jan. 1.
Banes was first elected in 2016.
veryGood! (83)
Related
- Arizona Supreme Court declines emergency request to extend ballot ‘curing’ deadline
- Kristin Cavallari Reveals Why She Broke Up With Mark Estes
- LeBron James Reacts to Making Debut With Son Bronny James as Lakers Teammates
- Would Suits’ Sarah Rafferty Return for the L.A. Spinoff? She Says…
- Indiana in the top five of the College Football Playoff rankings? You've got to be kidding
- Mail delivery suspended in Kansas neighborhood after 2 men attack postal carrier
- DreamWorks Animation at 30: Painting a bright path forward with ‘The Wild Robot’
- Alaska will not file criminal charges in police shooting of 16-year-old girl holding knife
- Celtics' Jaylen Brown calls Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo a 'child' over fake handshake
- Louisiana governor supports bringing back tradition of having a live tiger at LSU football games
Ranking
- After Baltimore mass shooting, neighborhood goes full year with no homicides
- Who are the 2024 MacArthur ‘genius grant’ fellows?
- Man accused of threatening postal carrier after receiving Kamala Harris campaign mail
- Man accused of threatening postal carrier after receiving Kamala Harris campaign mail
- 13 Skincare Gifts Under $50 That Are Actually Worth It
- Taylor Swift’s Makeup Artist Lorrie Turk Reveals the Red Lipstick She Wears
- Mountain terrain, monstrous rain: What caused North Carolina's catastrophic flooding
- Dockworkers go on a strike that could reignite inflation and cause shortages in the holiday season
Recommendation
-
Police cruiser strikes and kills a bicyclist pulling a trailer in Vermont
-
Alabama now top seed, Kansas State rejoins College Football Playoff bracket projection
-
Watchdog blasts DEA for not reporting waterboarding, torture by Latin American partners
-
Let All Naysayers Know: Jalen Milroe silences critics questioning quarterback ability
-
Will Reeve, son of Christopher Reeve, gets engaged to girlfriend Amanda Dubin
-
Facing more clergy abuse lawsuits, Vermont’s Catholic Church files for bankruptcy
-
All smiles, Prince Harry returns to the UK for children's charity event
-
Woman who lost husband and son uses probate process to obtain gunman’s records