Former City of Atlanta deputy chief of staff charged with accepting bribes

ATLANTA - Evelyn Katrina Taylor-Parks has been charged with conspiring to accept bribe payments while serving as the City of Atlanta’s Deputy Chief of Staff to the Mayor.

“As the Deputy Chief of Staff, the City of Atlanta and its citizens placed immeasurable trust in Parks to act in the best interests of the city,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak.  “Public officials have a responsibility to lead with integrity. Regrettably, Parks allegedly exchanged the power and trust given to her for bribe money paid by a city contractor.”

“Great trust was placed in Parks as Deputy Chief of Staff and she is charged with abusing that position to serve her own financial interests,” said J. C. “Chris” Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Because actions like this erode the public’s trust in government, the FBI will continue to vigorously pursue any public official who chooses to violate that trust.”

“Parks’ alleged engagement in personal benefit over the public’s trust cannot be tolerated as a high ranking city official,” said Thomas J. Holloman, Special Agent in Charge of IRS-Criminal Investigation Atlanta. “Pay to play politics will continue to drive IRS-CI and its partners to follow the money in this saga of city hall malfeasance.”

According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges, and other information presented in court: From approximately January 2010 to May 2018, Parks served as the Deputy Chief of Staff to the Mayor of the City of Atlanta, working with the Chief of Staff, Chief Operating Officer, and Department Commissioners to advance the administration’s legislative agenda with the Atlanta City Council. She also served as a representative on several community outreach committees. From 2011 to February 2014, Parks conspired to accept bribes from a vendor with the City of Atlanta.  The vendor paid Parks thousands of dollars, and in return the vendor received tens of thousands of dollars for City of Atlanta contract work.  Parks filed financial disclosure statements with the City of Atlanta in which she falsely attested that she was not self-employed or employed by any business or entity other than the City of Atlanta.

Evelyn Katrina Taylor-Parks, 49, of Douglas County, Georgia, has been charged in a criminal information with one count of conspiratorial bribery. Parks is expected to plead guilty to the charge at 3:00 p.m. on August 13, 2018, before U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey W.  Davis, Chief of the Public Integrity and Special Matters Sections, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jill E. Steinberg, Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.