Yost adds new defendants, allegations to his FirstEnergy lawsuit
(The Center Square) – Fallout from FirstEnergy’s deal to fully cooperate with federal prosecutors in what they call the largest bribery and racketeering scheme in state history continued Thursday.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced he has added two FirstEnergy executives and a former Ohio public official as defendants and new allegations to his racketeering lawsuit based on FirstEnergy admissions in recent U.S. Department of Justice filings.
Charles Jones, the fired FirstEnergy CEO, along with former senior vice president Michael Dowling are now defendants. Former Public Utility Commission of Ohio Chairman Sam Randazzo also is now a defendant.
Yost said the lawsuit also seeks to recover a $4.3 million bribe FirstEnergy admitted it paid to Randazzo to help construct House Bill 6 while serving as a FirstEnergy regulator.
“This is the justice system working, holding bad actors accountable,” Yost said in a news release. “To restore public trust, everyone involved in this sordid matter needs to pay a price. The goal is to leave no doubt – among politicians, the powerful and the rich – that engaging in public corruption will ruin you.”
Gov. Mike DeWine appointed Randazzo to head the PUCO in 2019. Court documents show Randazzo helped draft House Bill 6, the billion-dollar nuclear bailout bill that led to the indictment and ouster of former Ohio Speaker of the House Larry Householder.
Randazzo resigned in November after FBI agents raided his Columbus home the same day FirstEnergy admitted the payment.
“As I have consistently said, we understood that Sam Randazzo had worked for manufacturing companies, energy companies, and consumers, and that had had done work for FirstEnergy. Sam Randazzo was a well-known subject-matter expert in energy issues,” DeWine said in a statement in late July after FirstEnergy’s agreement with prosecutors. “If, as stated in the court documents, Sam Randazzo committed acts to improperly benefit FirstEnergy, his motives were not known by me or my staff.”
DeWine also said his campaign will make a donation to the Boys and Girls Club in the amount FirstEnergy contributed to his campaign.
Yost’s amended lawsuit adds allegations Randazzo and the FirstEnergy executives engaged in extortion, money laundering, coercion, intimidation and an attempted coverup.
FirstEnergy, based in Akron, admitted it conspired with public officials, others and entities to pay millions of dollars to public officials in exchange for specific official action to help FirstEnergy.
It also admitted it paid millions to an elected state public official through the official’s nonprofit in return for the official pursuing nuclear legislation to FirstEnergy’s benefit.
Householder, who was expelled from the Ohio House in June, has pleaded not guilty and maintains his innocence.
FirstEnergy faces charges of conspiring to commit honest services wire fraud, but those charges could be dropped if it continues to cooperate with prosecutors. Patel said the company already has cooperated substantially.
Householder, along with four co-conspirators, were charged a year ago. Three of the six entities have pleaded guilty.
Also charged were former Ohio Republican Party Chairman Matt Borges, lobbyist Neil Clark, the Oxley Group co-founder Juan Cespedes and strategist John Longstreth.
Longstreth admitted in a plea to organizing Generation Now for Householder, knowing it would be used to receive bribe money to further Householder’s bid for speaker of the House. Longstreth managed Generation Now bank accounts, and he said he concealed the energy company was the source of the funding.
Cespedes admitted he orchestrated payments to Generation Now, and he knew the payments were meant to help Householder politically in return for help in passing HB 6.
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