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Columbia prosecutor took $7,000 form SC Air National Guard, prosecutors claim

Dan Johnson is accused of taking $7,000 by accepting reimbursements from the guard for travel and lodging expenses.
Credit: WLTX
Dan Johnson

Columbia, SC (WLTX) - New court records released this week show federal prosecutors are accusing suspended Columbia prosecutor Dan Johnson of embezzling South Carolina Air National Guard funds.

Johnson is accused of taking $7,000 by accepting reimbursements from the guard for travel and lodging expenses. Federal prosecutors say he charged them on his government credit card from the solicitor's office and then pocketed the reimbursements.

The federal charges against him include wire and mail fraud and obstruction of justice.

Previous Coverage: Columbia prosecutor facing 36 new charges of public corruption

It's the latest claim for agents looking into allegations of corruption during Johnson's tenure as the head off the Fifth Circuit Solicitor's office, which prosecutes all criminal cases in Richland and Kershaw Counties.

Previous Coverage: Dan Johnson facing federal accusations of embezzlement of public funds

The new charges are on top of the ones filed by federal prosecutors in September, when they announced against Fifth Circuit Solicitor Dan Johnson including wire fraud, mail fraud and theft of government funds. The indictment claims he took public money to, as they put it, "finance a private lifestyle."

Previous Coverage: Nicole Holland pleads guilty to charges against her

Prosecutors say the money was taken using credit cards issued to the office, and the misuse of money distributed to the office for business purposes. He's also facing similar charges in state court.

Johnson's director of communications, Nicole Holland, was also accused of helping in the alleged scheme, but she's entered into a plea agreement to the federal charges against her. As part of the deal, she agreed to cooperate with prosecutors and tell them what she knew of the operation.

The Fifth Circuit Solicitor's office is the chief prosecuting agency for Richland and Kershaw Counties. Johnson had been the solicitor since 2011. But earlier this year, his spending practices while in office were called into question in published reports, and Johnson denied all allegations against him.

He was seeking re-election but in June, he was defeated in the Democratic primary by attorney Byron Gipson. (Gipson eventually won the general election in November). After a grand jury indicted Johnson in September, Gov. Henry McMaster suspended him from office.

Johnson has also had his law license suspended.

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