Buncombe County accepts $189K settlement with ex-assistant manager Jon Creighton

ASHEVILLE — Jon Creighton, the former assistant manager who's admitted to accepting bribes from an engineer in exchange for contracts, will pay back $189,000 under a settlement reached with Buncombe County.

The payment represents, in part, gifts that Creighton received from longtime contractor Joe Wiseman to which he was not legally entitled, as well as annual leave that he did not claim while on non-business trips and sold back to the county for a lump sum payment, said Ron Payne, Buncombe’s outside counsel.

With the latest settlement, the county will have recovered nearly $3.1 million since federal officials launched an investigation a year and a half ago. Creighton, who retired in December after a more than 30-year career with the county, pleaded guilty in October to a charge related to the kickback scheme.

"My client is continuing to try to make amends for his mistakes," Chris Fialko, Creighton's attorney, said late Tuesday.

Read more: https://www.citizen-times.com/story/entertainment/2019/01/15/jon-creighton-settlement-ex-assistant-manager-pay-buncombe-county-investigation-corruption-kickbacks/2586182002/