WLOS: Asheville ABC Board under investigation

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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WLOS reports that the Asheville Alcohol Beverage Control board is under investigation by state officials.

The investigation began about a month ago after anonymous complaints were sent to the State ABC Board.  The Asheville ABC board Chairman, Charles Worley says the complaints allege members of the board or staff may have accepted illegal gifts. 

The ALE and ABC Commission will only confirm that an investigation is underway. 

This story has been brewing all year. Back in January, state officials announced a statewide probe of possible ethics violations on the part of local ABC board members. The entire New Hanover County board resigned after ethics violations were discovered there, and several other boards have been under fire to clean up their acts.

Just yesterday, the Greensboro News & Record published a story noting the investigations and Gov. Beverly Perdue’s interest in turning the state-run liquor distribution system over to private hands.

From the story:

Scrutiny of those ABC boards intensified in late 2009. Revelations about a lavish meal provided by a liquor distributor to members of the Mecklenburg County ABC board and out-sized salaries paid to a father-and-son team who ran the New Hanover ABC board led to resignations and dismissals.

In Greensboro, the ABC board fired its executive director after discovering what a private investigator’s report called “a pattern of petty corruption.”

As well, data from Greensboro and some other systems suggest that publicly run liquor agencies don’t make as much money as they could, despite holding monopolies.