Former assistant Buncombe County manager reports to prison to begin sentence

Asheville, NC — Former assistant Buncombe County manager Jon Creighton has reported to a Kentucky prison as his sentence begins.

Creighton, 67, arrived this week, and has been assigned to serve his sentence at USP McCreary in Pine Knot, Kentucky. Michael Greene is also serving his sentence there.

The facility has a total of 1463 inmates between the two facilities; 1,321 at the high security facility and just 142 inmates in the minimum-security camp.

Creighton was sentenced to 18 months in prison, one year of supervised release, and a $25,000 fine for his plea to one count of conspiracy in the public corruption case involving a former county contractor and luxury trips.

Creighton’s time was significantly less because of the cooperation he provided the US Attorneys Office. He stood up in court, addressing the judge, expressing his remorse for the crime, and apologizing to county employees he said he let down.

Contractor Joseph Wiseman now is the only one of the five who've been sentenced in the federal public corruption case who has yet to report to prison.

Wanda Greene serving time in Texas Medical Facility

Wanda Greene was assigned to serve her time at FMC Carswell in Ft. Worth, Texas. The facility is described as an administrative security federal medical center with an adjacent minimum-security satellite camp.

It was revealed during sentencing that Greene has been diagnosed with cancer and was currently undergoing treatment.

Greene arrived the first week of October to begin serving her seven-year sentence. According to the Bureau of Prison's website, her release date is September 17, 2025.

FMC Carswell has a total of 1,605 inmates split between the medical center which houses 1,267 inmates and the minimum security camp, which houses 338 inmates.

Greene was sentenced at the end of August. The US Attorney's office had filed motions in federal court in recent weeks asking the judge to postpone her date to report to begin serving her sentence because investigators were continuing to question her.

In a motion filed near the end of September, the government said it has been meeting with Greene, who is, "continuing to provide assistance to the Government in the investigation and prosecution of other person including current and former employees and officials of the Buncombe County Government as well as third parties."

The federal government also indicated that Greene will be called to testify as a witness for the government against indicted former Buncombe County Commissioner Ellen Frost, which is set for trial during the December term.

Judge Robert Conrad said in August that Greene’s actions were “a horrific abuse of office,” calling her the "architect of a culture of corruption" as he sentenced her to 84 months, or 7 years, in prison.

Mandy Stone serving time in West Virginia

Former Buncombe County manager, assistant manager, and former DSS director Mandy Stone has reported to a minimum-security federal prison camp in West Virginia. Stone will serve her two-year, nine-month sentence at FPC Alderson, the same facility where Martha Stewart served her federal prison sentence.

After that, the facility was dubbed “Camp Cupcake." The all-women’s facility has 829 inmates.

Michael Greene also serving time in KY

Michael Greene, former county manager Wanda Greene’s son, has also reported to a federal prison in Kentucky.

Greene will serve his six-month-sentence at USP McCreary a high-security US penitentiary with an adjacent minimum-security satellite camp. Greene is likely in the minimum-security satellite campus, although the website doesn’t say.

The facility has a total of 1463 inmates between the two facilities 1,321 at the high-security facility and just 142 inmates in the minimum-security camp.

Joseph Wiseman yet to report

Joseph Wiseman, the contractor at the center of the bribery and kickback scheme, has yet to report to prison although will also likely be sentenced to a facility that can handle his health issues.

Wiseman, 59, of Roswell, Georgia, was sentenced to 37 months, just over three years, in the corruption scandal involving, so far, four others facing charges.

Wiseman worked with Buncombe County for over 30 years.

In 2009, while working for CDM, using stimulus funds, he conceived and executed a $4 million plan for methane collection and energy generation at the Buncombe County landfill. Recently Wiseman, now an independent contractor, also helped to change the slope of the landfill, extending its life and reducing county spending.

Between 2014 and 2017, with his own engineering company, Wiseman’s primary client was Buncombe County.

Wiseman claims industry practices he learned during his tenure at CDM continued and carried over to his work with PETRA and EIC, his engineering firm. According to Wiseman, in each company where he worked, they included meals and entertainment expenses for clients in connection with business-related trips.