Former Home Depot Employee Ian Jay Evans Acquitted on Conspiracy and Money Laundering Charges for Alleged Kickback Scheme
Ian Jay Evans of Mableton, Georgia, a former Home Depot employee, admitted to splittting $1.4 million in commissions with a product buyer for Home Depot, first to purchase rugs and other products from a vendor, and later to select Evans as a consolidator for rugs when Home Depot reset its rug department. He was charged in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia with conspiracy to commit money laundering and 17 counts of money laundering. However, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, after a week long trial, the jury acquitted Evans on all charges yesterday after deliberating for approximately 30 minutes.
Evans and his counsel argued that, even if the payments violated Home Depot policy, they did not constitute a federal offense. Evans attorney argued that, despite any alleged conduct by Evans, Home Depot did not lose any money but, on the contrary, made millions from the transaction.The Home Depot product buyer, Ronald Douglass Matheny, pled guilty to honest services fraud last year.
Evans' case is one of several against Home Depot employees for alleged kickbacks. A Home Depot spokesman stated that the company is considering filing a civil action against Evans.
