Former JEA CEO Aaron Zahn, whose fall from corporate power ended in a guilty verdict on federal criminal charges, has reported to prison.
Federal prison records show that Zahn is in Federal Correctional Institution, Edgefield. It is a medium-security facility in Edgefield County, South Carolina, with an adjacent minimum security camp.
The facility houses 1,707 inmates, with 1,264 in medium-security and 443 in the satellite camp.
The prison is 27 miles north of Augusta, Georgia, in southwest South Carolina. It is about 300 miles from Jacksonville.
He had been ordered to report to prison by the end of the day on Jan. 27.
Found guilty
Zahn was found guilty March 15 of conspiracy and wire fraud in connection with allegations that he and former JEA Chief Financial Officer Ryan Wannemacher schemed to loot the city-owned utility of tens of millions of dollars through a plot designed to provide themselves and other executives with undeserved bonuses though the sale of JEA.
The sale of the JEA was abandoned and the men were fired.
Wannemacher was found not guilty after a rare two-jury trial in which separate juries were seated for him and Zahn.
On July 30, Zahn was sentenced to four years in prison.
He filed an appeal Aug. 13 with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.
Zahn initially was ordered to report to prison by Oct. 28 but had been granted an extension after his family’s home in Tampa was damaged by hurricanes Helene and Milton.
Zahn, who became the city’s highest-paid employee in 2019 with a salary of $520,000, is now in a facility where the list of products available for purchase by inmates in medium-security commissary includes grilled cheese crackers for 35 cents, a 10-pack of disposable razors for $2.25 and Crocs shower shoes for $6. The list contains a wide array of products, including electronics, clothing, over-the-counter medications, beverages and sports, racquet balls and handballs.
Zahn's rise
Zahn took a steep rise to the top leadership position at JEA where he became the CEO in November 2018 nine months after Mayor Lenny Curry named him to the utility's board.
After two months on the board, he had been named interim CEO after the resignation of Paul McElroy.
In August 2019, JEA issued an invitation to negotiate a sale of the utility with private companies. Zahn subsequently claimed the utility would have to lay off 29% of its workforce and raise rates by 26% if JEA remained publicly owned.
The Daily Record reported that Florida Power & Light Co. parent NextEra Energy Inc. bid $11.05 billion for JEA.
As the sale process moved forward, concerns about the situation in the community and among City Council members led to a Council Auditor memo warning that a bonus program developed by Zahn and Wannemacher could cost the city up to $636 million if the utility were sold.
The auditor’s report triggered an inquiry by Council members Ron Salem and Rory Diamond, which was followed by a vote by the JEA board to fire Zahn in December 2019.
In March 2022, Zahn and Wannemacher were indicted.
During the trial, the government contended that Zahn would have received as much as $40 million had the plan been completed.
The sale also would have needed Council approval and a public referendum vote in favor.
Neither occurred, and the utility remains publicly owned.
This story has been updated with additional information.