JACKSON, Miss.—Former Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba pleaded guilty to a single charge of conspiracy to commit bribery, wire fraud and money laundering on Monday afternoon, concluding a years-long legal battle. An FBI sting that began in October 2023 and ended in May 2024 ensnared multiple Jackson politicians in a bribery scandal over a proposal to construct a hotel in downtown Jackson adjacent to the capital’s convention complex.
Shortly after Lumumba’s plea, former city councilmember Aaron Banks also entered a guilty plea for the same charge. Both men’s pleas came a week after former District Attorney Jody Owens also changed his plea to guilty. Previously, former councilwoman Angelique Lee and Hinds County businessman Sherik Marve Smith also pleaded guilty to a charge stemming from the same sting.
Lumumba exited the federal courthouse in Jackson today shortly after his plea, swarmed by media, declining to make a public comment as he left alongside his wife and sister. Sentencing for Lumumba, Banks and Owens is set for Oct. 15.
The three face up to five years in prison each upon sentencing, in addition to other potential penalties.
U.S. Court for the Southern District of Mississippi Judge Daniel Jordan accepted guilty pleas from Lumumba and Banks, one after the other on Monday afternoon.
Jordan emphasized that plea deals are not binding and that a plea cannot be reversed even if the judge declines to honor it, Jordan said at the Monday hearing.
The potential maximum penalty for the conspiracy charge is significantly lower than the maximum the men faced had they been convicted on all initial charges of bribery, wire fraud and money laundering that the conspiracy entailed. Those charges carried a maximum cumulative sentence of 75 years in prison. The government agreed to drop the more substantive charges in exchange for Monday’s pleas.
Jordan asked Lumumba to verify that he “understand(s) that the (sentencing) guidelines are advisory” at the Monday hearing, meaning Jordan can assign harsher penalties than the law suggests.
“I want to make sure you understand the penalties,” the judge said at the Monday hearing, before explaining sentencing guidelines for a conspiracy charge to Lumumba.
The sting that birthed these charges began when FBI agents approached multiple Jackson politicians posing as real estate developers in 2023. Eventually, the agents invited Lumumba and Owens on a luxurious excursion in Florida, where, aboard a yacht, the undercover agents offered them cash bribes in return for helping to move the hotel project along.
The federal indictment alleged that Lumumba called a Jackson employee and ordered them to shorten the bid window for a contract after receiving five payments of $10,000 from the FBI agents. The FBI raided Owens’ office and business, Downtown Cigar Company, within weeks of this alleged incident.
Lumumba, Owens and Banks originally pleaded not guilty to a series of related charges on Nov. 7, 2024.
The federal government intends to seek restitution in relation to this case, Assistant U.S. Attorney David Fulcher said in the Monday hearing.
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