Former Taylor mayor Rick Sollars takes plea deal for bribery, wire fraud
FOX 2 (WJBK) - The former mayor of Taylor has taken a plea deal following a federal bribery indictment that started in 2019.
Rick Sollars, 49, will plead guilty to two counts of the indictment - including wire fraud and conspiracy to commit bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds. His sentencing date is 9 a.m. January 22.
As part of his plea deal Sollars will receive no higher 71 months in jail - just shy of six years. his additional 31 counts from the federal corruption probe will be dropped. The court also agrees not to bring additional charges of money laundering and tax fraud in exchange for his guilty agreement.
The charges were in connection with the City of Taylor’s Right of First Refusal ("ROFR") Program and also involved a scheme to defraud donors to Sollars’ election campaign account by fraudulently using donated funds for his personal benefit.
"Sollars, as the Mayor of the City of Taylor, betrayed the trust of the citizens and the voters who supported him by awarding city contracts and spending campaign funds for his personal gain," said US Attorney Dawn Ison in a release. "Today’s plea represents my office’s commitment to hold accountable those elected officials who place their own greed above of their duties to the citizens in the community."
Acting Special FBI Agent Devin Kowalski said Sollars, who served first as a councilman, before being elected in 2013, eroded the faith of residents who entrusted him in office.
"No one is above the law and the FBI remains committed to combating public corruption and following the facts wherever they may lead," Kowalski said in the release.
According to court records, between 2016 and 2018, Sollars exercised his authority and influence as Mayor and recommended to the Taylor City Council that Shady Awad’s company, Realty Transition, be awarded the majority of the tax-foreclosed properties that the City had or would acquire under its Right of First Refusal program.
This was a program designed to allow Taylor to acquire tax-foreclosed properties from Wayne County for redevelopment. Sollars recommended Realty Transition for the ROFR program, intending to be influenced and rewarded by the free home renovations and other items of value that Awad provided to Sollars for his personal residence, office, and lake house.
According to the investigation there were $30,000 of renovations for Rick Sollars' home and $11,000 for his lake house, $12,000 for items like a new refrigerator, stove, $1,600 cigar humidor amid other items on the list - including thousands of dollars - all for Awad's company to get its hands on tax foreclosed properties owned by the city.
In 2015, Realty Transition was awarded all 95 of Taylor's tax-foreclosed properties; in 2016 29 of 24 properties; in 2017 38 of 45 properties; and in 2018 the entire property inventory, totaling 37 properties.
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FBI agents raided Sollars' home in March of 2019, seizing $200,000 in cash while around the same time, raided offices at Taylor City Hall and other locations.
As part of his election efforts, Sollars established a campaign account entitled, "Committee to Elect Richard Sollars, Jr." Sollars engaged in a scheme to defraud his donors by fraudulently using funds that were donated for his personal benefit rather than for his political campaign.
In furtherance of the fraudulent scheme, Sollars directed his campaign treasurer to provide him with a signed blank check from his campaign account. Sollars then made that check payable to Dominick’s Market in the amount of $5,600, purporting to represent payment for catering services provided to the campaign.
The owner of Dominick’s Market, Hadir Altoon, prepared a false invoice purporting to reflect a bill for $5,600 in catering services for a 2018 Superbowl party at City Hall. As known to Sollars, Dominick’s Market did not provide catering services worth $5,600 and instead cashed the campaign check and gave some of the money to Sollars for Sollars’s personal use.
In December of 2019 Sollars spoke to the media on the day of his indictment.
"I am not happy about any of it," said Sollars. "But again, I am innocent and I look forward to putting this behind me."