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| John T. Howard, Jr. |
John T. Howard, Jr., assistant vice president for the Airport Authority, conspired with Nashville-based contracting and cleaning companies to submit fraudulent invoices for a variety of work, according to the charges. He went on to enter similar arrangements with other contractors.
Among the allegations were that Howard, 44, approved payments to one contractor who, in turn, used a majority of the money to purchase $49,000 in plane tickets for a youth basketball team Howard founded.
Howard worked as the manager of the Metro Nashville Airport Authority Properties Corp., a subsidiary that operates and develops non-aviation properties for the authority.
It appears that Howard has reached a plea agreement, based on a motion filed Friday by the U.S. Attorney's office to set a plea hearing for Oct. 1. Howard resigned from his job on April 11. Howard could not be reached for comment. Howard's attorney Ed Yarborough said his client will not be commenting on the charges.
Howard instructed one contractor to recruit other contractors to submit fraudulent invoices as well, according to the charges. None of the companies involved were identified in court filings, though two of them were described as being certified by the Minority Business Enterprise program.
"These invoices were fraudulent in that contractors submitting the invoices had not in fact performed, overseen, or verified any of the services reflected on the invoices," the filings state.
In total, Howard approved fraudulent invoices totaling more than $1.1 million between 2012 and 2014, according to the court filings by U.S. Attorney David Rivera. Howard agreed that the contracting company would keep a portion of the funds paid out by the Airport Authority. It is unclear from the findings where the majority of the money went.
Howard also asked a company hired to do $8,000 worth of cleaning work for the Airport Authority to buy airline tickets for the youth basketball team he coached. After asking for the airline tickets, the government alleges that Howard directed the cleaning company to send a $57,100 invoice to the Airport Authority, which he approved, and the authority subsequently paid out. A little more than a week later, the cleaning company spent more than $49,000 to buy the airline tickets for the Music City Heat players, coaches and others, according to the charges.
Amid the approval of the fraudulent invoices, Howard deposited $10,500 cash into his bank account, according to the government.
Howard concealed the fraudulent invoices and wire transfers from Airport Authority officials, according to the charges. The Airport Authority is the Metro agency that oversees the operation of Nashville International Airport and the John C. Tune Airport.
"The (Airport Authority) became aware of questionable purchasing practices involving the employee who managed MNAA Properties Corp., the corporate subsidiary that operates and develops non-aviation commercial properties for the airport," MNAA Chief Legal Officer Bob Watson said in a prepared statement. "MNAA reported these concerns to law enforcement authorities. During the ensuing investigation, this individual resigned his position. From the onset, we have fully cooperated with this ongoing investigation, which does not involve any other MNAA employees.
"The Airport Authority requires that all its employees and vendors adhere to the highest standards of integrity and ethical conduct. We greatly appreciate the efforts of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in this matter. We are unable to comment further because of the nature and status of this investigation."
The government is charging Howard with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, receipt of bribe by an agent of an organization receiving federal funds and money laundering. The charges carry a maximum combined prison sentence of 40 years and a maximum total fine of $750,000.
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