Jason Zebert is going to pay up one way or another. U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves issued a writ of garnishment against the former lawyer after Zebert failed to make a restitution payment as required under his embezzlement conviction.
Mr. Zebert became guardian of an estate in 2000. He issued loans on behalf of the state for $44,468 and $133,749 in 2011 without court approval. The balance in the estate was $6,555 after the transactions took place. When questioned about the documentation for the disbursements, Mr. Zebert conjured up the spirit of Mike Brown and said they were destroyed by water damage in his office. Judge Dan Fairly ordered him imprisoned in July, 2012. Mr. Zebert appealed. The court affirmed Judge Fairly's incarceration of Mr. Zebert (The opinion is posted below and reports more specific information about this affair.).
Zebert's thieving ways came as a shock to many in Rankin County since he was the son of a well-respected Rankin County Chancellor. The grand jury indicted him and he pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement on February 17, 2015. Circuit Judge Bill Chapman sentenced him to serve twenty years in prison but suspended ten years of the sentence. The judge also sentenced him to supervised probation for five years upon release from prison and ordered him to pay restitution of $198,669. Judge Chapman did give him credit for time served (Two years, seven months).
The Mississippi Parole Board granted Zebert parole in 2016.
Zebert also pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to one count of embezzlement. A federal grand jury indicted in January 2014 for embezzling from the Veteran's Administration from 2004 to 2011. Judge Carlton Reeves sentenced him to serve twenty-four months in prison. The Bureau of Prisons website states he was released on October 13, 2015. Judge Reeves also sentenced him to a three year term of supervised probation. Oddly enough, the court also placed a special condition on his probation that decreed he could not "incur new credit charges or open any credit lines without the approval of the credit officer." Earlier post. Judge Reeves ordered Zebert to pay $198,769 in restitution in monthly installments of $500 upon release from prison. Zebert has paid $40,971 in restitution. However, he missed his last payment. The Justice Department applied for a writ of garnishment. The Court issued the writ against his wages at the Mississippi Conference of United Methodist Church.
Zebert also pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to one count of embezzlement. A federal grand jury indicted in January 2014 for embezzling from the Veteran's Administration from 2004 to 2011. Judge Carlton Reeves sentenced him to serve twenty-four months in prison. The Bureau of Prisons website states he was released on October 13, 2015. Judge Reeves also sentenced him to a three year term of supervised probation. Oddly enough, the court also placed a special condition on his probation that decreed he could not "incur new credit charges or open any credit lines without the approval of the credit officer." Earlier post. Judge Reeves ordered Zebert to pay $198,769 in restitution in monthly installments of $500 upon release from prison. Zebert has paid $40,971 in restitution. However, he missed his last payment. The Justice Department applied for a writ of garnishment. The Court issued the writ against his wages at the Mississippi Conference of United Methodist Church.
10 comments:
I believe I could come up with $500/mo to stay out of prison, but that's just me.
these con artists all seem to go to work for a church when they get out of prison
Hey, Methodists! Watch the offering plate closely!
Wonder how many thugs make the payments they are supposed to?
Dan Fairly. I don't miss him. He was a terrible judge that destroyed a lot of families.
Meanwhile, federal office holders who owe back taxes continue unabated and unpursued.
Wonder what his poison waqs?
What's to garnishee (properly spelt) if he ain't workin'?
MS United Methodist website says he's been appointed to Wesleyanna UMC in Star.
Big difference to me between a guy who fails to pay taxes and a lawyer/prosecutor/fiduciary that steals veterans benefits from his court appointed client and gives the money to his secretary and girlfriend. My recollection is this veteran was in a nursing home at the time of Zebert’s theft. Zebert, like Brown, APPLIED for prison when he stole money from somebody that he thought would never figure it out. BIG QUESTION: why was Zebert’s bond only $35k when the balance of the accounts he was appointed to oversee and protect was at about $165k or five times as much as the bond.
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