JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A federal judge is refusing to dismiss federal charges against two former top leaders of JEA, the city-owned utility.
Former JEA CEO Aaron Zahn and former JEA CFO Ryan Wannemacher are charged with conspiracy and fraud. Action News Jax told you in March 2022 when the two were indicted.
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Their charges stem from accusations they tried to enrich themselves during the effort to privatize JEA from 2018 to 2020.
Zahn and Wannemacher’s attorneys argued that some of the evidence prosecutors are using should be thrown out because the men were compelled to testify for a Jacksonville City Council committee investigating the situation.
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Magistrate Judge Monte Richardson’s recommendation found that the government has shown a basis for its allegations against both men, “even assuming that some of the evidence presented to the grand jury was tainted.”
In December 2019, Zahn was fired after an investigation involving a controversial proposal to sell the utility and privatize services. The JEA Board voted unanimously to terminate the former CEO with cause.
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Federal officials began investigating the failed JEA sale in January 2020, when it was turned over by the State Attorney’s Office. According to the indictment, the bonus plan from the sale could have paid out up to $345 million to Zahn, Wannemacher, and others.
Zahn and Wannemacher were originally set to go to trial in May 2022, and then the trial was postponed to October.
Action News Jax will continue to follow this case as it moves through the federal court system and keep you up to date on when the trial is set to begin.
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