A Columbus lobbyist facing charges in a $60 million bribery scheme to pass a bill in the Ohio legislature was found dead earlier this week.
Neil Clark, 67, was found dead with a wound to his head at 11:32 a.m. on Monday in Florida, according to an incident report from the local sheriff’s office obtained by Cleveland.com.
The report said that a handgun had been recovered from the scene. A local medical examiner’s office said there is a current investigation, but a cause of death has not yet been determined.
Clark had been charged with a racketeering conspiracy last year for his role in a bribery scheme to ensure that HB 6 went into effect. The scheme involved roughly $60 million in funds. Former Speaker of the House Larry Householder and two other men were also part of the scheme.
In the racketeering scheme, an enterprise called Generation Now, which was controlled by Householder, “received millions of dollars in exchange for Householder’s and the enterprise’s help in passing House Bill 6, a billion-dollar bailout that saved two failing, Ohio nuclear power plants from closing,” according to a press release from the Department of Justice.
Clark had pleaded not guilty to his involvement.
“In matters in which a defendant has passed away, the process is that a ‘Suggestion of Death’ is typically filed upon receipt of a death certificate, resulting in dismissal of the decedent from the case but not impacting the rest of the case,” Acting U.S. Attorney Vipal J. Patel said in a statement obtained by AP News. “All that will be addressed in due course. For now, we extend our condolences to Mr. Clark’s family and friends.”
Prior to his work as a lobbyist, Clark had been an aide and finance director for the Ohio Senate Republicans, as well as the founder of Grant Street Consultants, AP said.
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Jordyn Pair is a reporter with The Ohio Star. Follow her on Twitter at @JordynPair.
Photo “Neil Clark” by cleveland.com.
