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    Who are the elected officials involved in the Jackson MS corruption scandal? What we know

    Mars Posted on

    Two co-conspirators named as elected officials mentioned in court documents

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    After the second guilty plea in Jackson’s corruption scandal, questions remain about the identities of elected officials who court documents show were also involved, as well as former Ward 2 City Councilwoman Angelique Lee.

    Sherik Marve’ Smith pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery charges Thursday morning in federal court. Smith, prosecutors allege, was working with “unindicted co-conspirator B” and “unindicted co-conspirator C,” both of whom are Jackson city officials, according to court documents. Another conspirator, “unindicted co-conspirator A,” was also involved in the Smith and Lee cases.

    It is common for unindicted conspirators to be named in another criminal investigation. It is not unusual for these anonymous conspirators to never be charged.

    The Jackson scandal involves a real estate project proposed by two out-of-town developers who were actually undercover FBI agents. The indictment states that Smith agreed to make “cash payments and campaign contributions to unindicted co-conspirator B and unindicted co-conspirator C” from the undercover agents.

    The bribes, Smith case documents show, were in exchange for unindicted co-conspirator B’s vote in favor of the downtown housing project, which Lee agreed to do when she was bribed. The bribes were also in exchange for unindicted co-conspirator C’s agreement to move a deadline in favor of the real estate project, prosecutors allege in court documents.

    Ward 7 Councilwoman and Council President Virgi Lindsay confirmed that only a Jackson City Council member can vote to approve a development project. In addition to Lindsay, council members include Ward 1 Councilor Ashby Foote, Ward 3 Councilor Kenneth Stokes, Ward 4 Councilor Brian Grizzell, Ward 5 Councilor Vernon Hartley and Ward 6 Councilor Aaron Banks. Lee resigned from the board hours before his indictment in August.

    After Lee’s guilty plea in August, four council members – Foote, Grizzell, Hartley and Lindsay – confirmed that they had also met individually with out-of-town real estate developers interested in building a development in downtown Jackson. All denied accepting bribes during the meetings. They also confirmed that Hinds County Prosecutor Jody Owens was present at each of the individual meetings. None could verify whether these were the same developers Lee met with who turned out to be FBI agents. Banks and Stokes were the only council members who did not respond to a question about whether they had also met with the out-of-town developers.

    The same day Lee pleaded guilty in August, Stokes held a news conference in which he said he knew of several other officials in Jackson and Hinds counties who would also be charged. He declined to say how or who he thought would be charged.

    “I believe there will be a number of indictments against this community at the county level and at the city level,” Stokes said at the Aug. 14 news conference. “I said several weeks ago that we need to pray for the city and for the county.”

    The Clarion Ledger contacted each council member for comment Thursday after Smith’s guilty plea. Foote, Stokes, Grizzell, Banks and Lindsay could not be reached for comment. Hartley said he wanted to review the case further before providing additional comments, but he made this statement.

    “Clearly the investigations and indictments are not complete,” Hartley said via text message. “As city leaders, we must now work even harder to restore public trust. The citizens of Jackson expect us to pursue and continue to work diligently to improve our capital city. We are committed to this work .”

    As for unindicted co-conspirator C’s agreement to move a deadline in favor of the project, it remains unclear which city officials have that authority.

    Matt Steffey, a law professor at Mississippi College School of Law for more than 30 years, said he believes it’s either the mayor or council that has that authority.

    “The elected officials in question would almost certainly be the mayor or a member of the city council. And most of the work that comes to mind (from court documents) is done by the mayor,” Steffey said Thursday. “My first thought is of the mayor, because they were describing something that the mayor typically does. There are circumstances where I could see this referring to a city council member. But that would seem to fall on the executive function side of things – setting deadlines as the project progresses – so I think it’s the mayor.

    Neither the mayor nor any council member other than Lee and Smith have been charged with any crime.

    Prosecutors allege the following payments, intended as bribes, were made to unindicted co-conspirators B and C:

    • A $10,000 cash payment from undercover FBI agents to unindicted co-conspirator B.
    • Protective Services for Unindicted Co-Conspirator B.
    • A job opportunity for a family member of unindicted co-conspirator B.
    • A $10,000 check from Smith to unindicted co-conspirator C’s re-election committee using funds from undercover FBI agents after the funds were routed through an account belonging to unindicted co-conspirator A.

    Jackson spokeswoman Melissa Payne issued this statement Thursday when asked which elected official had the authority to extend a deadline for a development project:

    “We know nothing more about this situation than what has already been made public and it would be absolutely inappropriate for us to comment,” Payne said.

    Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba did not hold a news conference Monday as he usually does most weeks. Councilors Stokes and Banks were also not present at a special council meeting on Tuesday.

    Banks and Stokes did not respond to a request for comment on why they were not present at Tuesday’s council meeting.

    Mars
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