Trial of Ex-FirstEnergy Executives Charged in $60 Million Ohio Bribery Scheme Begins

The $4.3 million payment that Ohio-based FirstEnergy made to veteran lawyer and lobbyist Sam Randazzo in 2019, shortly before he was appointed as the state’s top utility regulator, is at the center of the latest criminal trial to get underway in a sweeping $60 million bribery scandal.

Prosecutors allege that then-FirstEnergy Corp. CEO Chuck Jones and then-FirstEnergy Services Corp. Senior Vice President Michael Dowling played roles in orchestrating the hefty payout to Randazzo in exchange for regulatory and legislative favors he would later deliver to the company. Both men have pleaded not guilty to felony corruption charges, denying all wrongdoing and arguing that the money was a lump sum settling Randazzo’s long-running consulting agreement with the company.

Opening statements kicked off Tuesday in Akron. Special Assistant Attorney General Matthew Meyer told jurors they need not to be overwhelmed by the complexities of utility regulation that they’ll encounter over what is expected to be an eight-week trial. He said that the two executives were smart men who knew exactly what they were doing.

Please select this link to read the complete article from The Associated Press.