Georgia mayor indicted for allegedly trying to give inmates alcohol is now suspended
THOMSON, Ga. — The mayor of a small town in Georgia has been suspended after he was charged over allegations that he illegally left a bottle of gin in a ditch for a state prison work crew.
Thomson Mayor Benjamin āBenjiā Cary Cranford, 52, was suspended Friday by Gov. Brian Kemp after a review panel concluded the allegations harmed his ability to do his job.
The August indictment in McDuffie County Superior Court says Cranford drove to a store on June 3, bought a bottle of Seagram’s Extra Dry Gin and left it in a ditch along Georgia 150 in Thomson, in the path of a Jefferson County work crew Correctional Institution. He is charged with two crimes: providing prohibited items to prisoners and attempting to commit a crime.
Three days later, Thomson police asked the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to investigate allegations that Cranford provided alcohol to inmates, the GBI said.
Officers arrested the mayor at Thomson City Hall after a council meeting and led him away in handcuffs. He is free on $5,000 bail.
Cranford told WRDW-TV that he has no memory of what he did on June 3 and that he knows no inmates at the Jefferson County Jail.
Cranford will remain suspended without pay until the charges are resolved or his term expires.
Cranford won last year’s election, defeating 12-year incumbent Kenneth Usry. Cranford was a paving contractor before he was elected and later settled a lawsuit alleging he tried to hide assets from a surety bond company that was on the hook to pay some of his company’s debts.