Former Buncombe County officials are learning their punishment for public corruption. Citizen Times staff are covering today's sentencing hearings for former manager Wanda Greene, assistant managers Mandy Stone and Jon Creighton, Business Intelligence Manager Michael Greene and longtime engineering contractor Joe Wiseman.

Keep refreshing this file and stay tuned for the latest updates.

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Wanda Greene is sentenced to 7 years in prison

Former Buncombe County Manager Wanda Greene has been sentenced to 84 months, or 7 years, in prison and ordered to pay a $100,000 fine.

U.S. District Judge Robert Conrad called the 68-year-oldthe "architect" of a culture of corruption in Buncombe County and said Greene engaged in "out-of-control criminal activity" despite her nearly $250,000 annual salary and generous retirement benefits as a county employee.

Joe Wiseman is sentenced to 37 months

Joe Wiseman, the engineering contractor embroiled in a corruption scandal with former Buncombe County officials, has been sentenced to 37 months in prison and ordered to pay a $15,000 fine. Upon release he will serve a year of supervised probation.

Prosecutors have said former county managers Wanda Greene, Mandy Stone and Jon Creighton for years traveled around the world, attended sporting events and had spa treatments in exchange for awarding government work contracts to Wiseman. Wiseman received more than $15 million in contracts from the county, according to prosecutors.

Before sentencing, Wiseman said he “fully accepts” his guilt and is “deeply shamed” by his actions. His voice cracking with emotion, Wiseman made three apologies: to the citizens of Buncombe County, fellow Christians for disgracing the faith and to his family.

“I’m sorry I put you through this,” said Wiseman, tears in his eyes as he turned toward his family a few rows back in the courtroom. “It’s been a horrific ordeal, and you don’t deserve this.”

Holly Pierson, one of Wiseman’s two attorneys, argued for a lower sentence primarily because of Wiseman’s poor health caused by Type 2 diabetes, which has resulted in recurring foot ulcers and the amputation of a toe. She also said Wiseman’s “remorse is genuine” and he’s been “horrified” by what his family has been through.

Pierson also said Wiseman, 55, is a religious man who had conducted business honestly for three decades.

“If there were no Wanda Greene, if there were no Jon Creighton, none of this would’ve happened,” Pierson said.

Wiseman’s other attorney, David Brown, argued for a lesser sentence while describing Wiseman as a “minimal participant” in the bribery and kickback scheme. While Brown acknowledged that Wiseman bribed county officials, the attorney said Wanda Greene forced his hand, threatening his livelihood if he didn’t pay for trips and gifts.

“It was bribery — we don’t dispute that,” Brown said. “But it was bribery that was forced on Mr. Wiseman.”

Prosecutor Richard Edwards acknowledged that Wiseman had been cooperative and seemed genuinely remorseful, but he also said the bribery and kickback scheme was part of a “culture of corruption” in Buncombe County in which Wiseman was integrally involved. Edwards also said the Bureau of Prisons is equipped to care for Wiseman’s medical needs.

Judge Robert Conrad termed Wiseman’s behavior “opportunistic and not coerced,” adding that Wiseman “engaged in despicable behavior” that robbed the community of a sense of trust.

“Mr. Wiseman is an educated man, and he was willing to participate in the corruption (with) officials for personal benefit,” Conrad said.

The judge said he will recommend Wiseman be incarcerated at Butner Correctional Center in eastern North Carolina because it’s a minimum security facility with well-regarded health care.

Wanda Greene arrives in court

Former Buncombe County Manager Wanda Greene has arrived in federal court ahead of her sentencing this afternoon. She's pleaded guilty to two counts of federal program fraud, one count of making and subscribing a federal tax return and one count of receipt of kickbacks and bribes.

The crimes carry the potential of 33 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

Federal prosecutors previously filed court documents opposing a request by Greene to serve four years in prison for the corruption charges, saying the former public official's behavior "is indicative of an actor who is confident that she will not be caught or challenged, nor will her actions be meaningfully reviewed."

Prosecutors want more:They say Wanda Greene's 4-year sentence request is not enough for 'breathtaking' crimes

A sentencing memorandum filed Aug. 22, meanwhile, indicated that Greene wore a recording device to assist federal officials with a pending grand jury investigation in which she is allegedly not a co-conspirator but a victim.

Mandy Stone is sentenced to 33 months in prison

Former assistant county manager Mandy Stone has been sentenced to 33 months in prison and ordered to pay a $15,000 fine. Upon release she will serve a year of supervised probation.

Stone addressed the court and said, "I sincerely apologize to this community, to the citizens of this community and to the employees of this community."

Stone said she lives every day regretting her actions and how they've affected a child in her care.

Imposing the sentence, U.S. District Judge Robert Conrad noted the "very serious nature of the betrayal of public trust." He also noted that "a sense of entitlement seemed to permeate the county."

The judge said that in some ways Stone is different from other county employees involved in the scandal because she was not in a position to exchange contracts with Wiseman for bribes. The judge chastised Stone for putting in her per diem payments for trips that were already charged to the county, referring to that as a "cheap, almost tacky reimbursement for per diem expenses."

Stone's attorney, Jack Stewart, argued that she had served the county for almost four decades and that these trips occurred only over a two-year period from 2014 to 2016. At one point Stewart said, "She does recognize the shame she's brought on herself and her family" as well as disgrace on the public sector.

Stone has admitted she took vacations and other gifts that were paid for by Georgia-based contractor Joe Wiseman. He worked for three companies, including his own Environmental Infrastructure Consulting, which was awarded more than $15 million in county contracts since the mid-1980s, according to federal prosecutors.

Jon Creighton is sentenced to 18 months in prison

Former assistant county manger Jon Creighton has been sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered to pay a $25,000 fine. Upon release he will serve a year of supervised probation.

The sentence comes despite a request by Creighton's attorney for probation time and a court filing by federal prosecutors describing what they said was substantial assistance from Creighton.

Creighton spoke in court, apologizing for receiving kickbacks. Creighton said taking bribes from Wiseman was "without a doubt the biggest mistake I ever made.

"I'll regret it for the rest of my life."

Creighton apologized to his wife of nearly 39 years and to all county employees, saying his actions undermined public confidence.

"Neither you nor any other judge will ever see me in a courtroom ever again," Creighton said to Conrad. "I have learned my lesson."

Mandy Stone arrives in court as passerby chants 'Lock her up'

Former Buncombe County manager Mandy Stone arrived at the courthouse as someone in a passing car chanted, "Lock her up!"

Michael Greene has been sentenced to six months in prison

Michael Greene, Buncombe County's former business intelligence manager, has been sentenced to six months in prison and a $5,000 fine in addition to a year of supervised probation.

"This is a very serious matter of public corruption in this case, as well as a sense of arrogance in this case and others as far as misuse of tax dollars," said presiding U.S. District Judge Robert Conrad.

While imposing the sentence, Conrad cited Michael Greene's improperly using county-purchased credit cards in 2009 and said, "I've seen Mr. Greene's hand did touch the hot stove back in 2009, and he did have the opportunity to disengage."

Greene did not comment in court, but his attorney Ted Besen had argued for no jail time and a maximum $2,000 fine. Besen said Greene had accepted responsibility for criminal actions and since leaving his county post had become a Realtor but had not received any income from that. Since then he's become self-employed, according to Besen, who said Greene had made a $40,000 restitution to the county.

Besen said Greene, 48, who's been married 22 years, had "suffered a humbling impact" in how his wife and children look at him. Besen said he "never vouches in court this way for a client in court, but I don't think you will see Mr. Greene both in this court or any other court ever again."

Federal prosecutor Richard Edwards said Greene became fully cooperative only after being indicted in April 2018.

"Mr. Greene's memory was not all we had hoped for," Edwards said. Adding the indictment, "we hoped maybe loosened his memory."

Edwards said Michael Greene was more cooperative after that.

Edwards said that Greene's case shows "just an arrogance, a blurring of lines between what is and isn't your money."

The judge questioned Besen about Greene's ability to pay the fine, and Besen confirmed that Greene receives $5,000-and-change a month from his mother, former county manager Wanda Greene, who's due in court later today.

Greene was charged with conspiracy to embezzle, steal, obtain by fraud or misapply county funds and 50 counts of wire fraud offenses.

Joe Wiseman arrives in court

Joe Wiseman has arrived in court ahead of sentencing.

Michael Greene arrives in court as protester calls for maximum sentence

Michael Greene, who is the son of Wanda Greene, Buncombe County's former manager, has arrived in court ahead of sentencing. Wanda Greene is slated arrive by this afternoon.

Weaverville resident John Payne protested outside the courthouse. “They stole from me,” he said of the officials scheduled to be sentenced today. “I hope they get the maximum.”

U.S. District Judge Robert Conrad is presiding over the hearings. He's been dubbed "Maximum Bob Jr."

What to know:Corrupt officials in Buncombe County are being sentenced Wednesday

Jon Creighton arrives in court

Jon Creighton has arrived in court ahead of sentencing.

Wiseman's claim of extortion is 'baseless,' Greene's attorneys argue

Ahead of her hearing, Greene's attorneys filed a court document dismissing Wiseman's claim that he was extorted by the county manager, calling the accusation "baseless" and "divorced from facts."

Wiseman bribed the former managers, Greene's defense argued, and not only paid for but actively participated in vacations that he funded. They also pointed to false county staff identification cards that officials created to make it easier for check-ins at hotels.

The court record said "one memory that stands out in Wanda's mind" is when Wiseman and Creighton purchased club memberships at Napa Valley wineries and were "constantly researching where to go and what to drink."

"The facts are, as the undersigned counsel have previously said, just what they look like," Greene's attorneys said in the court filing. "The appeal of this arrangement was that all involved liked to travel, and not coercion by Wanda or anyone else."

When they'll be sentenced

The defendants will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert Conrad throughout the day:

9:30 a.m.: Michael Greene

Michael Greene 10:15 a.m.: Jon Creighton

Jon Creighton 11 a.m.: Mandy Stone

Mandy Stone 11:45 a.m.: Joe Wiseman

Joe Wiseman 2 p.m.: Wanda Greene

Possible prison time, and their requests for leniency

As many as 33 years and as little as no prison time are among the options for the corrupt officials. All filed court records ahead of the hearing in which friends and family pleaded for leniency, with several specifically asking for lighter sentences.

Wanda Greene: Her maximum penalty is 33 years. The federal probation office has calculated a sentencing guideline range of 70-87 months. Her defense is requesting a 48-month sentence, a request that the U.S. Attorney's Office opposes.

Joe Wiseman: His maximum penalty is five years, and the probation office has calculated a 36 to 47-month sentencing guideline range. Though court records submitted by Wiseman's attorney don't specify when it asked for significantly less time, a filing by federal prosecutors indicates that the former contractor is asking for "no active incarceration."

Mandy Stone: She faces a five-year maximum penalty, with a 37 to 46-month guideline range from the probation office. Her attorney asked for a lesser sentence.

Jon Creighton: His maximum penalty is five years, and the probation office calculated a 46 to 57-month guideline range. Citing the information he provided about the kickbacks scheme, his attorney has filed a court document asking the judge instead sentence Creighton to three years of supervised probation, the first of which would include home detention.

Michael Greene: His guideline range is zero to six months, much less than the five-year sentence his charge can carry. He submitted character letters from supporters asking for leniency.