Colcor

in December 1981 during the course of their investigation. Soles was ultimately acquitted of criminal charges. Colcor, short for Columbus County Corruption, was an undercover criminal investigation conducted by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) into corrupt activities involving government officials in Columbus County, North Carolina. While the FBI had for several years received complaints about local alleged protection rackets and election fraud, they did not begin an investigation until 1980, when one of their former informants moved to the county and reported that he was being told to pay bribes to ensure the smooth operation of his business. Their investigation centered on the activities of undercover agents posing as corrupt businessmen with connections to the Detroit Mafia. Using an illegal gambling club and a precious metals business as fronts, the FBI agents successfully implicated a local judge, police chief, and the chairman of the county commission in bribe-taking. In an attempt to investigate election fraud, the agents initiated a referendum to legalize liquor-by-the-drink in the town of Bolton and attempted to buy votes to sway the outcome in favor of legalization, the first time the FBI had ever attempted to manipulate a public election.…

in December 1981 during the course of their investigation. Soles was ultimately acquitted of criminal charges. Colcor, short for Columbus County Corruption, was an undercover criminal investigation conducted by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) into corrupt activities involving government officials in Columbus County, North Carolina. While the FBI had for several years received complaints about local alleged protection rackets and election fraud, they did not begin an investigation until 1980, when one of their former informants moved to the county and reported that he was being told to pay bribes to ensure the smooth operation of his business. Their investigation centered on the activities of undercover agents posing as corrupt businessmen with connections to the Detroit Mafia. Using an illegal gambling club and a precious metals business as fronts, the FBI agents successfully implicated a local judge, police chief, and the chairman of the county commission in bribe-taking. In an attempt to investigate election fraud, the agents initiated a referendum to legalize liquor-by-the-drink in the town of Bolton and attempted to buy votes to sway the outcome in favor of legalization, the first time the FBI had ever attempted to manipulate a public election. They also uncovered a scheme by a state legislator to burn down a business rival's warehouses but failed to stop the arson. The operation ended in 1982. Of 40 people indicted on state and federal charges, 38 were convicted, while State Senator R. C. Soles Jr. and Lieutenant Governor Jimmy Green were found not guilty on bribery offenses.

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