Husband of Former DeKalb County Commissioner Sentenced to Prison for Stealing County Funds

ATLANTA – John Boyer, the husband of former DeKalb County, Georgia, Commissioner Elaine Boyer, has been sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison for conspiring to steal county money.  His plea and corruption charges stem from Elaine Boyer’s conviction on similar charges in September 2014.

“John Boyer used his wife’s position as a DeKalb County Commissioner to steal thousands of dollars in taxpayer funds. The Boyers’ scheme put county money in their pockets and ultimately left the citizens of DeKalb County holding the tab,” said U.S. Attorney John A. Horn.  “In a county that has recently seen its share of corruption cases, this is a particularly sad chapter.”

“The sentencing of Mr. Boyer further illustrates that there are consequences for those who assist or entice public officials with regard to criminal corrupt activities.  The FBI continues to make public corruption investigations its number one criminal program priority and asks that anyone with information regarding such activity to notify their nearest FBI field office,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office. 

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: In DeKalb County, Georgia, the Board of Commissioners serves as the legislative branch of the DeKalb County Government. The Board of Commissioners is comprised of seven part-time commissioners, who are elected to serve four-year terms. Each of the seven Commissioners is responsible for the management of their respective offices, which includes controlling the offices’ budget and hiring staff members, contractors, and consultants. In recent years, the operating budget for a Commissioner’s office has been approximately $250,000 per year. The Commissioners may use their budget only for county-related business. 

In 1992, Elaine Boyer began serving as the Commissioner of District 1, which serves citizens in north DeKalb County, including Brookhaven, Dunwoody, Tucker, and Smoke Rise, Georgia. In August 2014, Elaine Boyer resigned mid-term as the Commissioner of District 1.

In 2009, Elaine and John Boyer experienced financial difficulties. As a result, an unlawful kickback scheme was devised to obtain money from DeKalb County. In particular, in or about September 2009, Elaine Boyer, as the Commissioner of District 1, hired a family-friend Marion Rooks Boynton (who has been separately charged) as a political advisor allegedly to assist her with government consulting.

As part of the scheme, false invoices were submitted to Elaine Boyer’s office for services supposedly rendered by Boynton. In fact, Boynton performed no services for DeKalb County government, Elaine Boyer’s Office, or the citizens of DeKalb County.

Elaine Boyer used the false invoices as a basis to authorize payments to Boynton. From September 2009 to November 2011, based on requisition requests from Elaine Boyer’s Office, DeKalb County issued approximately 35 checks to Boynton for consulting services that were never performed. In total, DeKalb County paid Boynton more than $85,000.

John Boyer then instructed Boynton to deposit the money that Boynton received from DeKalb County into a bank account used by Elaine and John Boyer. Consequently, after being paid by DeKalb County, Boynton funneled approximately $60,000 received from DeKalb County into a personal bank account used by the Boyers. In turn, the Boyers used the money deposited into the account to pay personal living expenses.

In August 2014, Elaine Boyer, 59, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, resigned mid-term as the Commissioner of District 1. The day after resigning, Boyer was charged with conspiring to commit wire and mail fraud.  On March 20, 2015, Boyer was sentenced to one year, two months in prison and ordered to pay approximately $87,000 in restitution.

On February 24, 2015, John Boyer, 63, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit mail fraud. Boyer was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay approximately $87,000 in restitution.

On August 11, 2015, the Grand Jury returned an indictment against Marion Rooks Boynton, 73, of Saint Simons Island, Georgia, on charges of conspiracy and substantive federal program theft.

This case is being investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey W. Davis is prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.