Fifth Circuit Solicitor and Director of Communications indicted

United States Attorney Sherri A. Lydon announces that 47-year-old Daniel Edward Johnson, Fifth Circuit Solicitor and a resident of Blythewood, and 49-year-old Nicole Halliett Holland, Director of Communications and a resident of Columbia, were charged in a 26-count indictment by a Grand Jury in Columbia for wire fraud, mail fraud, conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud and theft of federal funds. Ms. Lydon stated the penalty faced by the defendants is imprisonment not exceeding 30 years, with a potential fine up to $500,000. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorneys Winston D. Holliday, Jr., Alyssa L. Richardson, and William C. Lewis of the Columbia office are prosecuting the case. The United States Attorney stated that all charges in the indictment are merely accusations and that all defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.