Former Jacksonville Electric Authority CEO Aaron Zahn has been sentenced to four years in federal prison on charges of conspiracy to steal and embezzle city funds and wire fraud, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida. U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis handed down the sentence after Zahn, aged 44, was convicted by a jury on March 14, following a four-week trial.
The case centered on accusations that Zahn orchestrated a deceptive bonus plan known as the Performance Unit Plan (PUP) while at the helm of JEA, an entity serving Jacksonville since 1895. Under Zahn's leadership, the PUP was sold to the board as a reasonable incentive structure, in reality, it was set to line executives' pockets upon the sale or privatization of the municipal utility.
According to the evidence presented at trial, the PUP was engineered to inflate the value of its units from $10 to potentially $11,500 each, setting up a bonus pool of $315 million to be withdrawn from the proceeds of JEA's sale. Zahn stood to gain roughly $40 million, while other executives could pocket around $10 million each. The PUP was exposed as a façade, masquerading as legitimate stock tied to JEA's supposedly equity-devoid public entity.
It wasn't until the City Council Auditor, after Zahn and others asked many questions, issued a memorandum on November 18, 2019, revealing the PUP's true nature. This revelation, shedding light on a plan that could embezzle funds ranging from $3 billion to $5 billion from the potential sale of JEA, effectively terminated the Invitation To Negotiate process and Zahn's employment. "Fraud and corruption pose a fundamental threat to our national security and our way of life, and the FBI will not tolerate those who seek to deceive American citizens," Special Agent in Charge Kristin Rehler of the FBI Jacksonville Field Office told the press.
The FBI's Jacksonville Field Office, along with the State Attorney’s Office for the Fourth Judicial Circuit investigators, conducted the thorough investigation leading to Zahn's sentencing. The prosecution by Assistant United States Attorneys A. Tysen Duva and Chip Corsmeier culminated in today's result, marking a pivotal moment for accountability and the safeguarding of the public's trust.
