Atlanta investigators find 3 former City Planning staff took bribes to speed up permitting process

ATLANTA — A recent report from Atlanta’s Office of Inspector General found that three staff members working for the Department of City Planning had accepted bribes in order to speed up permitting processes.

According to the OIG, the two no-former permit technicians, as well as their supervisor, worked for the Light Commercial Division of the Department of City Planning Office of Buildings.

The first technician to fall under the investigation of OIG was Sheaner Magee, the office said in a report.

Investigators said “this case stems from an encounter reported to OIG in which Magee contacted an OOB customer and told the customer that if the customer gave Magee $500, the customer’s permit application would be reviewed.”

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Going further, investigators said “Magee also reportedly told the OOB customer that for $1,500, the customer could receive an expedited review. Unbeknownst to Magee, the OOB customer had a personal acquaintance who was employed at OOB.”

The customer told their acquaintance about Magee’s offer and they reported it to department management, who alerted OIG,

OIG began investigating the technicians and their supervisor in March 2023 after receiving information from an employee who said “that former OOB Permit Technician Sheaner Magee solicited a payment from an OOB customer to have an expedited application review.”

OIG found that Magee had taken at least five payments from customers at OOB from January 2022 to February 2023, ranging from as little as $75 to as much as $450, including a payment that came with a message: “plans.”

The investigation found that all of the customers who had paid Magee had active permit applications which he was helping with when he received the payments.

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Another technician in Magee’s unit, Shaniecia Tucker, had also taken bribes from customers, according to OIG. Their investigation into Tucker started after she was fired for “departure from OOB protocols on a permit application that she had processed.”

When they investigated, OIG found that she’d taken at least four payments ranging from $200 to $1,200 between November 2022 and April 2023.

Tucker received a payment that had a message that came with it, reading “expeditor,” according to the OIG investigation.

OIG said the two former technicians had the same supervisor, Angela Epps.

The investigation found that Epps had taken at least five payments from an electrician between $50 and $200 from July 2021 and August 2022, each accompanied by the message “permit” or “permits,” OIG said.

The electrician had active permit applications with OOB that Epps was handling when the payments were received, OIG said.

The inspector general’s office said they referred their findings to the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office for potential criminal charges.

“Records indicate these individuals capitalized on their positions as public servants to enrich themselves,” Inspector General Shannon K. Manigault said in a statement. “We are grateful that OOB brought this matter to our attention so that OIG could conduct a full investigation and seek to hold the individuals accountable.”

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