BALTIMORE (WBFF) — A Glen Arm man pled guilty to bribing a former Baltimore City finance official, which led the city to lose over $145,000, the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s office announced Thursday.
James Carroll Erny, Jr., 55, admitted to paying at least $25,000 in bribes to Joseph Gillespie, a former employee of the Baltimore City Department of Finance, officials reported.
In return for the bribes, Gillespie halted various financial obligations that Erny owed to the city, resulting in financial losses exceeding $145,000 for the city of Baltimore, according to the report.
From December 2019 to August 2023, officials said Erny engaged in a bribery scheme in which Gillespie abused his position as a public official for personal gain.
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During this time, Erny owned at least eight properties in the city and routinely paid bribes to Gillespie to delay, remove, or halt financial obligations owed to the city, including unpaid citations, taxes, and water bills.
Authorities reported that Erny paid these bribes primarily in cash, providing Gillespie with envelopes containing as much as $1,000 each while Gillespie worked as a city employee at the Abel Wolman Municipal Building.
On some occasions, Erny and Gillespie met in a men’s bathroom to exchange the envelope, and Erny also sent Gillespie bribe payments on Cash App or Zelle.
Furthermore, Erny admitted to engaging in another scheme involving fraudulent COVID-19 relief loans, resulting in Erny fraudulently obtaining $996,240 in Paycheck Protection Program funds. Erny also attempted to obtain more than $100,000 in Economic Injury Disaster Loan funds.
Erny faces up to 10 years in prison for bribery and is scheduled for sentencing on Tuesday, June 9, at 11 a.m.
In February 2025, Gillespie was sentenced to four years in prison for wire fraud conspiracy.
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