COLUMBUS, Ohio — A longtime Ohio lobbyist who had pleaded not guilty in a sweeping federal bribery investigation has been found dead.<\/p>\n
In response to a request about information concerning Neil Clark\u2019s death, the sheriff\u2019s office in Collier County, Florida, where Clark had been living, provided a report describing a man\u2019s body being found near a pond Monday morning by a bicyclist. The county medical examiner confirmed to AP it was Clark\u2019s body and that a medical investigation and autopsy are underway.<\/p>\n
When officials reached out to the man’s wife, she said the couple was having financial issues and that she had not heard from her husband for a couple of hours, according to the report.<\/p>\n
Clark, 67, had pleaded not guilty in August over an alleged role in a $60 million scheme in which federal prosecutors say FirstEnergy companies funneled money through a network of dark money entities to then-Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder in exchange for the passage of a $1 billion nuclear bailout bill.<\/p>\n
Former U.S. Attorney David DeVillers mentioned Clark’s death during a presentation Tuesday to the board of the Office of Ohio Consumer’s Counsel, in which he was discussing the probe.<\/p>\n
A message seeking details was left with Clark’s attorney, Bill Ireland.<\/p>\n
Clark, a Republican, had been described by federal prosecutors as the enforcer for Householder, strong-arming supporters and providing fundraising expertise.<\/p>\n
Before becoming a lobbyist, Clark was the finance director for the Ohio Senate Republicans, gaining inside experience in state budget-making with which he was able to help his many lobbying clients.<\/p>\n
Clark parlayed his Senate work initially into a powerhouse bipartisan lobbying partnership with the late Paul Tipps, a former chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party. The two ultimately had a nasty falling-out, their firm dissolved and Clark founded his own firm, Grant Street Consultants.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn matters in which a defendant has passed away, the process is that a \u2018Suggestion of Death\u2019 is typically filed upon receipt of a death certificate, resulting in dismissal of the decedent from the case but not impacting the rest of the case,\u201d Acting U.S. Attorney Vipal J. Patel said in a statement. \u201cAll that will be addressed in due course. For now, we extend our condolences to Mr. Clark\u2019s family and friends.\u201d<\/p>\n
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This story has been corrected to show the body was found Monday and to delete a reference to Clark dying Tuesday.<\/p>\n
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Farnoush Amiri is a corps member for the Associated Press\/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.<\/p>\n