Ex-AZ Official Pleads Guilty To Taking Bribes From Local Firm

CULVER CITY, CA – A former Arizona public official pleaded guilty Monday to accepting tens of thousands of dollars in cash bribes from a now-defunct Culver City-based debt collection firm in exchange for disclosing confidential information that helped the company collect nearly $1 million in outstanding debts.

Leslie Gene Nelson, 59, of Phoenix, pleaded guilty in Los Angeles federal court to one count of bribery, a felony that carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

U.S. District Judge S. James Otero scheduled a June 24 sentencing hearing for Nelson, who was an employee of the Arizona Department of Economic Security, a state agency that provides unemployment benefits.

In his plea agreement, Nelson admitted he accepted at least $26,000 in cash bribes from Michael S. Flowers and Flowers' employer, Professional Collection Consultants, from about September 2010 until August 2013.

In exchange for the bribes, Nelson provided Flowers and PCC with wage and earnings information for thousands of specific Social Security numbers that Flowers provided, according to court documents. AZ DES maintained wage and employment-related data in its computer systems, which were linked with federal and state databases that contained confidential information for people nationwide, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Nelson admitted that he received the Social Security numbers from Flowers and that he sent confidential information found on each individual or advised that no wages existed for a specific Social Security number. Armed with the confidential information, PCC analyzed the collectability of each debtor's debt and determined whether it was financially reasonable to sue the debtor to obtain a court judgment that would allow the company to garnish the debtor's wages.

During the first eight months of 2013, the confidential information that Nelson provided helped PCC collect $946,770 in debts owed. Flowers, 58, of the Mid-City district, deposited Nelson's bribe payments into a local bank, and he also received a 10 percent commission on the recoveries made by PCC.

Flowers and PCC each pleaded guilty previously to conspiracy to commit federal program bribery. Flowers was sentenced to three years' probation. PCC was fined $350,000 and ordered to forfeit $946,770, according to federal prosecutors.

City News Service