Developer Daniel Colton has been sentenced to two years in prison and three years of supervised probation for his role in the corruption scandal tied to former Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson.
Colton, who was also ordered to pay a $50,000 fine, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Peter Messitte and is the last of 17 defendants to be sentenced in the scandal that dates to 2006. A 64-year-old Annapolis resident, Colton pleaded guilty in 2010 to two felony counts in connection with the corruption scandal.
District Attorney Rod Rosenstein announced the sentencing Tuesday afternoon. Colton, along with developer Patrick Ricker and retired county fire department official Karl Granzow offered perks such as money, trip expenses, rounds of golf and mortgage payments to state and county officials in an alleged “pay-to-play” scheme, according to news release from Rosenstein’s office. In exchange for the bribes, Rosenstein alleged, state and local officials granted favorable official actions to Colton, Ricker, Granzow as well as other developers.
Colton was involved in several large developments in the county. His GB Development was a lead developer in the sprawling Westphalia town Center project, which has since been acquired by a Canadian development team. He also held an ownership stake in Greenbelt Metropark along with Ricker and Granzow.
