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A sheriff in Virginia has now been federally charged in connection with allegedly accepting cash in exchange for deputy badges.
Culpeper County Sheriff Scott H. Jenkins is alleged to have accepted cash bribes and campaign contributions-related bribes “totaling at least $72,500” from multiple individuals. Of those who paid bribes, two were undercover agents working with the FBI.
“Our elected officials are expected to uphold the rule of law, not abuse their power for their own personal, financial gain,” U.S. Attorney Christopher R. Kavanaugh said in a press release earlier this week.
Starting in at least April 2019, Jenkins, 51, is accused of offering those who paid him the chance to be appointed as deputies, at which point they received their official badges. Though it should go without saying, this is indeed an illegal activity; it’s also particularly worrisome given that Jenkins allegedly made sure these individuals knew that scoring such a badge meant they could carry concealed guns without a permit.
Jenkins’ charges include one count of conspiracy, four counts of honest services mail and wire fraud, and eight counts of federal programs bribery. Three other individuals—identified in a news release as Rick Tariq Rahim, Fredric Gumbinner, and James Metcalf—have also been charged.
The conspiracy counts carry a maximum possible sentence of up to five years behind bars, while the fraud counts could lead to up to 20 years. The bribery counts, meanwhile, could result in a sentence of up to 10 years if convicted as charged.
In photos featured on an official website, Jenkins is pictured wearing Trump-inspired attire, including a Make Virginia Great Again hat and t-shirt. He's also a vocal Second Amendment hawker.
Complex has reached out to the Culpeper County Sheriff’s Office for comment. At the time of this writing, Jenkins was still listed as the sheriff on the department’s official website. Complex has also reached out to the Virginia Sheriffs’ Association. This story may be updated.
Expectedly, this story isn’t the first this month to involve a law enforcement official being accused of serious crimes. Just this week, for example, it was reported that a former police chief in Maryland was sentenced to life behind bars after being convicted in connection with a series of revenge fires.
