Final defendant in Muncie corruption probe draws one-year term
INDIANAPOLIS — The final defendant in a years-long federal investigation of government corruption in Muncie was sentenced Tuesday to a year and a day in prison.
Local contractor Tony Franklin, 64, had pleaded guilty in May to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
He was also ordered to pay the Muncie Sanitary District $279,896.99 in restitution.
The Delaware County resident was one of five people charged in a bribery conspiracy involving MSD contracts.
Three co-defendants — former MSD officials Nikki Grigsby and Tracy Barton and retired city police officer Jess Neal — had already been sentenced for their role in the bribery scheme, known as "the Program."
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The fifth co-defendant, former local Democratic Party chairman Phil Nichols — repeatedly said to be the creator of the scheme — died in September, after signing a plea agreement in the case but before actually pleading guilty.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany Preston said at Tuesday's hearing that among contractors linked to the scandal, Franklin by far engaged in the most illegal activities, winning contracts in exchange for bribes.
"He was the one who profited the most," Preston said. "He did it for years."
Preston said the crimes of Franklin and others created the impression that "there's no way to get ahead in Muncie unless you lie, cheat and steal."
She also noted Franklin had lied to FBI investigators "over and over and over again."
Preston recommended that U.S. District Court Judge James Sweeney II impose a two-year sentence.
"I'm ashamed of what I've done," Franklin told the judge. "I made a serious mistake, your honor. .. I'll have to deal with it the rest of my life."
His defense attorney, Kathryn DiNardo, suggested her client be placed on probation, calling him a "hard worker, good neighbor, good father (and a) good friend."
"I cannot change history, but I can have a positive impact going forward," Franklin told the judge.
In addition to imposing the one-year sentence, Sweeney ruled that Franklin would spend two years on "supervised release" after leaving prison.
Four other defendants not directly tied to "the Program" bribery allegations — including ex-Mayor Dennis Tyler — were convicted of crimes as a result of a federal investigation into corruption in the Tyler administration and the sanitary district.
That probe began in 2014 and lasted at least through 2020.
Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Last defendant in long-running Muncie corruption case sentenced
