Phil Ammann
Aaron Zahn, former CEO of Jacksonville’s JEA, began serving his four-year sentence at FCI Edgefield in South Carolina this week, according to initial reports by First Coast News.
This marks the culmination of a legal battle stemming from what has been called Jacksonville’s “largest fraud case.”
Zahn, 45, turned himself in nearly six months after his July 30 sentencing for conspiracy to embezzle federal property and wire fraud, convictions he received on March 15. His scheme aimed to unlawfully siphon hundreds of millions of dollars from JEA, the largest public utility in Florida, back in 2019.
FCI Edgefield, a medium-security prison housing 1,707 male inmates, will be Zahn’s residence. Upon release, he will also be subject to a year of probation, during which Federal Judge Brian Davis has mandated participation in substance abuse and mental health programs.
The jury found that Zahn masterminded a scheme to pilfer hundreds of millions from Jacksonville’s electrical utility, a public entity of considerable magnitude in Florida. His sentence, handed down on July 30, 2024, includes a year of probation upon release, along with court-ordered participation in substance abuse and mental health programs.
The parallel trial of former JEA CFO Ryan Wannemacher, who faced identical charges, resulted in a not-guilty verdict.
This trial was a key facet of a broader narrative chronicled in USA Today’s feature: “Money & Power: The secret origins — and public collapse — of the campaign to privatize Jacksonville’s electricity and water.”
During Zahn’s sentencing, Davis noted the unusually high number of character letters submitted on Zahn’s behalf, acknowledging support from “scores” of individuals, including family, friends, former flames, and even a person whose life he had saved. However, Davis also highlighted that only one letter touched on a crucial point: that “good people can, and do, make bad decisions.”
Judge Davis emphasized the dangerous confluence of “deceit and greed,” which he said can “blind good people to the error of their ways.” He underscored that if Zahn’s plan had succeeded, it would have stripped Jacksonville’s citizens of their “most valuable asset” while enriching the former CEO, a gross breach of public trust.
Davis clarified that as a public official, Zahn had a high fiduciary responsibility to serve the people of Jacksonville, “Deviations from that trust are intolerable,” he stated.
