STONECREST, Ga. — Jason Lary, the now-former mayor of Stonecrest, has pleaded guilty to wire fraud, federal program theft and conspiracy to commit federal program theft. Lary had a court hearing Wednesday. This news comes just a day after he announced he would step down from his position to focus on his health.
In November, the Northern District of Georgia Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt Erskine said Lary had been arraigned on the federal charges. Officials said the charges were related to a scheme to allegedly steal federal relief funds granted to the city to help with the COVID-19 pandemic. A bookkeeper was also arraigned.
Last year, authorities claimed businesses were allegedly defrauded out of hundreds of thousands of dollars. They said about $6 million was expected to be allocated to the Stonecrest Cares Program and Small Business Program. However, Erskine said Stonecrest did not disburse the funds to the programs.
Officials claimed the bookkeeper allegedly used her access to a bank account to wire transfer about $108,000 to a mortgage servicing company. Lary and the bookkeeper allegedly knew the purpose of the transfer was to pay off the mortgage on a lakefront home he owned. Around the same time, officials said Lary allegedly directed about $7,600 to be paid for the bookkeeper’s son’s college tuition and rent.
During Tuesday's news conference, Lary said he would resign as mayor on Jan. 5 at 10 a.m. He gave background as to what played into his decision by opening up about his health struggles, including battling cancer three times. He also said he talked to his family about the decision.
"It's time for me to retire from politics, really focused on my health," he said Tuesday.
"So in closing, I asked you all measuring the whole story as to what we had in place. I'm forever grateful for those residents who supported the vision that was implanted in me, by God, of course, allowing me to be the founding and first mayor," he added.
Lary was the first mayor of Stonecrest, which was incorporated in 2017.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.