The mayor of Jackson and other local officials in Mississippi are accused of bribery

JACKSON, Miss. — The mayor of Mississippi's capital city said Thursday that “he will continue to take care of the city's business” after pleading no contest to charges related to allegations of a bribery scheme that have also led to indictments against a prominent district Lawyer and former city council president had pleaded guilty.

Flanked by about two dozen supporters on the steps of a federal courthouse in downtown Jackson, Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba said after his indictment that he would remain in office.

“I am not guilty, and therefore I will not appear as a guilty man,” said Lumumba, a Democrat who is in his second term and announced plans to run for a third term last month.

The charges stem from what federal prosecutors have described in court documents as an attempt involving Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens and at least two City Council members to help developers win approval for a proposed hotel project in the area near the city's convention center.

The city's efforts to get a hotel near the venue, which included taking out a multimillion-dollar loan in 2008 from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, date back nearly two decades. According to the federal indictment outlining the grand jury indictment against Lumumba, Owens and Banks, the project had to be completed by June 2025.

According to the indictment unsealed Thursday, recent Nashville, Tennessee-based “developers” who were in contact with local officials and wanted to build the hotel were actually undercover FBI employees.

According to the indictment, Owens allegedly “facilitated” improper bribe payments to Lumumba, former City Council President Aaron Banks and Angelique Lee, who resigned from her council seat and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery in August.

One of the “developers” contacted Owens, a Democratic prosecutor who also owns a cigar bar in Jackson, in August 2023 about possible real estate opportunities in Jackson, the indictment says.

Owens later told the two “developers” that he had “a lot of f—— information on all the city council members” that allowed him to “get votes approved,” the indictment says.

The charges against Owens include, among others, conspiracy to commit federal program bribery, honest services wire fraud and money laundering; three counts of federal program bribery; and one count of lying to federal officials.

Lumumba faces five charges, including one count of bribery of federal programs and another count of money laundering. Banks was charged with conspiracy to commit federal program bribery, honest wire fraud and money laundering, as well as one count of federal program bribery.

The indictment alleges that Lumumba, Owens and a relative of Owens, Sherik Marve Smith, took a trip on a private jet to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in April and “paid the expenses thereof.” [by] the FBI on behalf of the developers.” According to NBC affiliate WLBT of Jackson, Smith pleaded guilty to federal bribery charges last month.

Authorities allege that while traveling on a yacht, Lumumba “hidden” $50,000 in five $10,000 campaign contributions from project developers and directed a city employee to set a deadline for interested parties to submit proposals for the hotel project postpone, according to the indictment and a press release. Authorities said they recorded the exchange on video and audio, and the indictment includes screenshots of the recording.

Banks, who did not take the trip, is said to have demanded $50,000 in return for his assistance.

Federal authorities have accused him of accepting at least $10,000 cash in an envelope from Owens.

“Banks and Owens understood that the money was being paid in exchange for Banks’ future vote(s) to approve the developer’s proposed development project,” the indictment states.

Owens is accused of accepting at least $115,000 and the “promise of future financial benefits,” a Justice Department news release said. The FBI raided Owens' business and his office at the Hinds County Courthouse in May.

“Leaders who have the public’s trust should focus on the needs of the Jackson community and not seek to line their own pockets and benefit themselves,” said Todd Gee, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi , in a press release on Thursday.

Banks, a Democrat who represents the city's 6th District, did not respond to an NBC News reporter's request for comment as he left the courthouse with his supporters. He pleaded not guilty Thursday.

Four years ago, Owens' office filed the first charges in one of the largest public corruption cases in Mississippi history – the misspending of at least $77 million in welfare money intended to help residents of one of the poorest states in the country. At least seven people have pleaded guilty in connection with the scandal.

“This indictment is a terrible example of a flawed FBI investigation,” Owens told reporters after pleading not guilty Thursday.

“We believe the truth must come out – that carefully selected statements about drunken locker room banter are not a crime,” he added before driving off in a black SUV with his legal team.

Owens did not specify which statements he was referring to. The indictment quotes at times that he used profane language in his alleged dealings with the developers.

“I don’t give a shit where the money comes from. It could have come from blood diamonds in Africa, I don't give a fuck,” Owens said at one point, the indictment says. “I’m a real prosecutor.”

In another case, he is said to have used a profane term when describing what he was buying in response to inquiries.

The trial is scheduled for Jan. 6 — four days after the start of the qualifying period for the city's 2025 mayoral election.