Aug. 09--MIDDLESEX -- A former county sheriff will stand trial Thursday on 25 charges in connection with misuse of funds.
Guy Abbott is charged with three felony counts of bribery, four counts of embezzlement and 18 counts of misuse or misappropriation of funds.
According to online court records, the bench trial at Middlesex Circuit Court in Saluda should take at least six days.
Abbott, 55, was arrested on the charges Aug. 25 and processed at the Peninsula Regional Jail in James City County. Abbott was released on a personal recognizance bond.
Abbott is accused of accepting a total of $1,120 over three separate occasions in exchange for a decision, opinion or recommendation.
Between 2003 and 2008, Abbott is also accused of using his office to obtain a 1985 Volvo, a Boston Whaler boat, a 1982 Privateer boat and a 1993 Nova Marine inflatable boat, according to indictments handed down by a special grand jury last year.
Other counts contained in the indictments accuse him of misusing public funds and Visa and MasterCard credit cards over an eight-year period going back to 2000, his first year in office.
In November, Abbott was voted out of office. He finished second in a four-man race by 346 votes to David Bushey, a former Middlesex County Sheriff's deputy.
Abbott had previously been elected sheriff in Middlesex in 1999 and re-elected in 2003 and 2007.
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