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The FBI is investigating former S.C. prosecutor Jay Hodge following allegations about financial improprieties during his time in office.
Before retiring in January, Hodge, 59, served for 12 years as the elected solicitor of the 4th Judicial Circuit, which covers four mostly rural counties southeast of Charlotte – Chesterfield, Darlington, Dillon and Marlboro.
“Allegations came in from that community regarding Mr. Hodge and financial matters within the office during his tenure as solicitor,” said Kevin McDonald, first assistant U.S. attorney for South Carolina. “And the FBI is following up on the allegations.”
Launched months ago, the investigation is focused on “alleged financial improprieties,” McDonald said. He declined to comment further.
First elected to the solicitor's office in 1996, Hodge serves as president of Mercy Ministries Inc., a faith-based nonprofit in Cheraw that helps house women and children who are victims of abuse.
Barbara Bullard, former director of Mercy Ministries, said she filed a complaint with the FBI last year alleging that Hodge was misappropriating money from the agency.
Bullard declined to specify how much money she believed had been misappropriated, but said, “I can tell you it's a sizable amount.”
The nonprofit agency collected about $145,000 in public donations in 2007, according to its latest IRS return. In a bequest to the agency, a local resident set up a fund with stocks that eventually grew to be worth more than $1 million, Bullard said.
Federal authorities have issued subpoenas to demand access to financial records kept by both Mercy Ministries and the solicitor's office, Bullard said.
In May, several months after retiring from the job as the Fourth Circuit's top solicitor, Hodge also stepped down from a new position as assistant solicitor, according to news reports.
The former solicitor won an award last year from the S.C. Arts Commission for his work on behalf of children and the arts. He has established three youth arts programs – including Camp Turn Around and Camp Turning Point – to provide students “alternatives to risky behavior,” the commission wrote for its award presentation.
Hodge has also raised money to restore the Chesterfield County Courthouse and turn it into a performing arts center, museum and gallery, the commission wrote. Staff researcher Maria David and Lisa Hammersly contributed.
