Waynesboro Mayor Gregory Carswell pled guilty Tuesday, April 12, to a felony count of identity fraud, a felony count of theft by taking and a felony count of theft by deception. The state elected not to prosecute him for a fourth charge, forgery in the 2nd degree.
As part of his sentence, the Bulloch County judge ordered Carswell to 10 years probation, $11,920 in restitution, an alcohol and drug assessment and a $1,000 fine.
Carswell made use of the State’s First Offender Act which states that upon a plea of guilty, but before an adjudication of guilt, a defendant who has not been previously convicted of a felony, may be placed on probation.
In July 2020, Carswell was arrested in Statesboro on allegations related to his employment at a Statesboro title pawn business. In December 2020, a Bulloch Grand Jury indicted him on the charges. Carswell voluntarily took a leave of absence from his mayor position in May 2021, the same month that Governor Brian Kemp officially suspended him. The City of Waynesboro has continued to pay Carswell a gross income of $830.00 per month.
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