Arizona Official Pleads Guilty to Accepting Bribes from Debt Collection Company in LA

LOS ANGELES – In a shocking case of corruption, Leslie Gene Nelson, a 59-year-old former Arizona public official, pleaded guilty to accepting tens of thousands of dollars in cash bribes from a now-defunct Culver City-based debt collection company in exchange for confidential information that helped the company collect nearly $1 million in outstanding debts.

Nelson, who was an employee of the Arizona Department of Economic Security (AZ DES), admitted to accepting at least $26,000 in cash bribes from Michael S. Flowers and his employer, Professional Collection Consultants (PCC), from approximately September 2010 until August 2013.

According to court documents, Nelson provided Flowers and PCC with wage and earnings information for thousands of specific Social Security numbers that Flowers provided. Armed with the confidential information, PCC analyzed the collectability of each debtor’s debt and determined whether it was financially reasonable to sue the debtor to obtain a court judgment that would allow the company to garnish the debtor’s wages.

During the first eight months of 2013, the confidential information that Nelson provided helped PCC collect $946,770 in debts owed. Flowers, 58, of the Mid-City district of the City of Los Angeles, deposited Nelson’s bribe payments into a local bank and he also received a 10 percent commission on the recoveries made by PCC.

Nelson admitted that he received the Social Security numbers from Flowers and that he sent confidential information found on each individual or advised that no wages existed for a specific Social Security number. This information was used by PCC to target debtors and collect debts.

Nelson pleaded guilty to one count of bribery, a felony offense that carries a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison. United States District Judge S. James Otero scheduled a June 24 sentencing hearing.

The case was investigated by the United States Department of Labor, Office of the Inspector General, which received assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Arizona Department of Economic Security. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Elisa Fernandez of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section.

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