Former City of Atlanta official sentenced for accepting bribes

ATLANTA – Former City of Atlanta Commissioner of Watershed Management Jo Ann Macrina has been sentenced to four years and six months in prison for accepting bribes from an Atlanta contractor in exchange for steering city business worth millions of dollars to the contractor’s company.

“Jo Ann Macrina was entrusted to safeguard the water supply for millions of Atlanta residents but instead resorted to corruption by steering work to a city contractor in exchange for cash, luxury items, and a lucrative job offer,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “We are committed to working closely with our partners to rid local government of those who allow personal greed to lead to the abuse of positions of trust.”

“Macrina exploited her position to feed her own greed,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “This case is especially disturbing because she was the head of a department. This conviction reflects our continuing commitment to root out corruption and bring to justice those who abuse positions of power.”

“By enriching herself through bribes, Jo Ann Macrina abused her public trust,” said James E. Dorsey, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Atlanta Field Office. “The sentence she received serves notice to public officials that they are not above the law and will be held accountable for using public funds for their own use.”   

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Macrina served as the Commissioner of Atlanta’s Department of Watershed Management from 2011 through May 2016. During Macrina’s tenure, the City of Atlanta awarded millions of dollars in contracts to an architectural, design, and construction management and services firm based in Atlanta. Macrina took multiple steps to steer lucrative contracts toward the firm’s joint venture. Those actions included casting aside prior final scores ranking potential vendors where the joint venture ranked near the bottom, replacing two evaluators who previously represented the Department of Watershed Management with herself and Macrina’s employee, and scoring the joint venture higher than all other evaluators during a reevaluation.

In exchange for providing the firm’s executive vice president with access to confidential information and preferential treatment on City of Atlanta projects, Macrina was offered a job and accepted things of value. For instance, Macrina accepted $10,000 in cash, a diamond ring, a room at a luxury hotel in Dubai, and landscaping work at her home from the firm’s executive vice president either directly or through another employee of the firm. Shortly after Macrina’s employment with the City of Atlanta ended, she began working for the firm. Between June 2016 and September 2016, the firm and its executive vice president paid Macrina $30,000 in four separate payments.

Jo Ann Macrina, 66, of Daytona Beach, Florida, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones to four years and six months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and $40,000 in restitution.  Macrina was convicted of conspiracy and federal program bribery on October 14, 2022, following a jury trial.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and IRS Criminal Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan P. Kitchens for the Northern District of Georgia and Trial Attorney Jolee Porter of the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section prosecuted 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-ndga.