Radio host will serve at least a year in prison

Sports radio talk show host Charles "Scott" McKinney will serve at least a year and a day in prison for bilking investors out of more than $100,000.

McKinney pleaded guilty Friday to nine counts of theft and one count each of organized fraud, money laundering and racketeering, prosecutor Russ Edgar said.

Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 24.

Eight of the theft charges involved money taken from investors in McKinney's Southern Sports Tonight radio program.

The ninth involved McKinney using his ex-fiancé's credit card to steal about $10,000 from her, Edgar said.

Edgar said the plea arrangement, which could land McKinney in state prison for up to five years and calls for "no less than a year and a day," was designed so he would not serve his sentence in a county jail.

"We don't want our victims to hear him broadcasting from the county jail on a work release," Edgar said.

The plea came on docket day. McKinney's was scheduled to go on trial Monday.

McKinney, 42, of Santa Rosa Beach, works for Star Broadcasting as a commentator for 98.1 FM The Ticket sports talk radio. He co-hosts "The Morning Wrap" weekday mornings and "Southern Sports Tonight" weekday afternoons. He was originally arrested on the fraud and theft charges in March.

Ron Hale, owner of Star Broadcasting, said McKinney would remain on the air until the sentencing hearing.

"We won't pull him off the air," Hale said.

Edgar said the state was prepared to prove at trial that McKinney had sold more than double the number of investment shares than existed in Southern Sports Tonight by convincing clients he was going to syndicate his program nationally.

McKinney told investors he needed money to buy broadcast equipment, investigators said. Edgar said McKinney spent the funds he received on himself.

Edgar said he would request that McKinney be ordered to pay about $188,000 in restitution.

Brian Campbell, one of McKinney's investors, called Friday "a sad day."

"There are not any winners in this situation, not the community, not the victims, nobody, really," Campbell said.

Edgar said he also was prepared to prove that McKinney had arranged for his former fiancé to put his name of what he told her was a company credit card, then ran up a $10,000 bill on the card.

Edgar said he also intended to show that McKinney had run an investment scam in Tennessee similar to the one he is charged with here.

Criminal complaints also have been made against McKinney in Mississippi, although Edgar said he doubted charges would be filed in that case.

McKinney declined comment on the plea.