Jerry Rhea, the former owner of Quality Paving and Quality Resurfacing, lost his appeals and stood in an Adams County courtroom for a new sentencing hearing Monday — more than three years after a jury convicted him of theft in a scam that cost Adams County taxpayers more than a million dollars.
District Court Judge Steven Eugene Shinn reduced Rhea’s original sentence to six years, down from the . The amount of restitution Rhea is required to pay back remained at $250,000.
District Attorney Dave Young objected to the sentence reduction, according to a news release from his office.
Rhea was found guilty of 23 counts of theft and influencing a public servant after a four-week trial in February 2012.
Quality Paving and Quality Resurfacing had no-bid contracts where they were able to bill the county for about $1.8 million in roadwork that was never completed.
In May 2014, the Rhea’s conviction, and in April of this year, the Colorado Supreme Court denied the appeal. Rhea will start his sentence Aug. 3.
Rhea’s company vice president, Dennis Coen, was convicted and sentenced before Rhea and is currently serving 13 years in prison after he was convicted of 62 felonies.
Former Adams County public works director Leland Asay, who was involved in the scam, is serving a 30-month sentence after where he plead guilty to one theft charge and had 25 others dropped.
Yesenia Robles: 303-954-1372, yrobles@denverpost.com or twitter.com/yeseniarobles
