02/14/2024

Fired FirstEnergy Execs, Former PUCO Chairman Plead Not Guilty in Bribery Scheme

They were indicted by a Summit County grand jury Friday

Two fired executives of FirstEnergy Corp. and a former top state utilities regulator pleaded not guilty Tuesday to state charges related to a $60 million bribery scheme that centered on securing a legislative bailout for two Ohio nuclear power plants with the help of a powerful House speaker.

Former FirstEnergy CEO Chuck Jones and Senior Vice President Michael Dowling forcefully pushed back after Republican Attorney General Dave Yost announced their indictments Monday, disputing fact patterns laid out in the state's 50-page indictment and claiming a lack of evidence.

They and Sam Randazzo, a former chair of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) who is also federally charged, were indicted by a Summit County grand jury Friday on a combined 27 criminal counts, including bribery, theft, engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, tampering with records and money laundering.

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