Second person charged in corruption scandal that brought down Jackson city councilwoman pleads guilty in federal court

JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – A Hinds County man has pleaded guilty to a federal bribery charge for his part in a scandal that ensnared a Jackson city councilwoman and led to a federal raid on businesses linked to the Hinds County Prosecutor.

Federal court documents released Thursday morning show Sherik Marve Smith was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.

He initially pleaded not guilty Thursday in U.S. District Court, then changed his plea to guilty, according to court records. He was released on $10,000 unsecured bond. As part of his plea deal, he will have to repay $20,000.

Smith faces up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release and a $100 special assessment to the court.

The briefing states that Smith conspired with three other unnamed, unindicted individuals to ensure that money from FBI agents posing as developers was funneled to Jackson city officials who could influence the real estate development project of the developers.

A 3 On Your Side investigation earlier this year revealed that Smith was one of two local investors mentioned in a request for qualifications submitted to the city of Jackson in March regarding the development of a convention center hotel. The other was Hinds County Prosecutor Jody Owens.

That company was the Nashville-based Facility Solutions Team, which was one of three companies that responded to Jackson’s request. WLBT later learned that Owens and FST met with several council members earlier this year, including council members Virgi Lindsay, Ashby Foote and Aaron Banks, as well as former councilwoman Angelique Lee.

A few months after those meetings, in May, FBI agents raided Owens’ downtown cigar business and his office at the Hinds County Courthouse.

The newly released documents reveal more about the federal government’s case against these three other individuals who have not yet been indicted on federal charges, referred to as co-conspirators A, B and C.

According to court documents, Smith and Co-Conspirator A negotiated and communicated payment offers from FBI officials to Co-Conspirators A and C.

The bill also states that Smith and co-conspirator A transferred payments to co-conspirator B in exchange for a vote on a real estate development project in the city, and to co-conspirator C to direct “a or several city employees to move a real estate project.” deadline in favor of “the real estate development proposed by Individual 1 and Individual 2.”

The mayor is the only municipal elected official who can order his employees to postpone deadlines. Co-conspirator B is likely a city council member, because only council members can vote on projects.

So who are the co-conspirators? Here’s what the court documents say:

• Co-conspirator A not charged – a resident of Hinds County; Conspired with Smith to “corruptly give, offer, and agree to give things of value, including cash payments and campaign contributions,” to unindicted co-conspirators B and C; Bank account owned/controlled through which payments were routed
• Unindicted Co-Conspirator B – an elected official from the city of Jackson; received bribes in exchange for his vote on a convention center hotel project
• Unindicted Co-Conspirator C – an elected official from the city of Jackson; received bribes in exchange for support for a convention center hotel project; funds were deposited into the war chest of this co-conspirator campaign to order city employees to push back a deadline for the benefit of the developers
• Individuals 1 and 2 – confidential human sources from the FBI, who posed as Nashville developers; provided the money and cash for the bribes, which were routed through Smith and co-conspirator A.

As for the time frame, it was unclear what time frame the court records were referring to. However, records indicate that Co-Conspirator C directed one or more City employees to move the deadline in question.

The plot occurred between October 2023 and May 2024. The city’s last statement of qualifications was released in January of this year. It was released months after Jackson received no response to his previous request for proposals. Two other companies responded to the January request:

The payments included $10,000 in cash to the unindicted co-conspirator B, protective services for co-conspirator B, and a job opportunity for a member of co-conspirator B’s family.

Smith routed a check for $10,000 to “Co-Conspirator C’s Reelection Committee using funds from Individuals 1 and 2 after those funds were routed through an account belonging to…Co-Conspirator A.”

Individuals 1 and 2 were confidential sources working for the FBI. Both posed as Nashville real estate developers looking to invest and develop property in downtown Jackson.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Smith is an insurance specialist and sales manager for Penn Global Marketing, where he has worked for 16 years and two months. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration, marketing and management from Jackson State University.

The bill disclosure reveals striking similarities to the bill unsealed when Lee pleaded guilty to a related corruption charge.

In this case, Lee also received a payment routed through an account belonging to an unidentified and unindicted co-conspirator. She also received $3,000 in cash and went on a $6,000 shopping spree at a local high-end retailer using an FBI agent’s credit card.

She resigned from the city council in August after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery. She has not yet been sentenced and her sentencing date has been postponed until further notice.

Jackson Communications Director Melissa Faith Payne declined to comment when we asked if the mayor could comment. “Why would he have a comment?” she asked.

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