2 Mississippi sheriffs and 12 officers charged in drug trafficking
bribery scheme
[October 31, 2025]
By SOPHIE BATES
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Federal authorities on Thursday announced
indictments against 20 people, including 14 current or former
Mississippi Delta law enforcement officers, that allege the officers
took bribes to provide safe passage to people they believed were drug
traffickers.
The yearslong investigation swept across multiple counties in the
Mississippi Delta region of Mississippi and Tennessee. Two Mississippi
sheriffs, Washington County Sheriff Milton Gaston and Humphreys County
Sheriff Bruce Williams, were among those arrested.
Some bribes were as large as $20,000 and $37,000, authorities said at a
news conference.
“It’s just a monumental betrayal of public trust,” U.S. Attorney Clay
Joyner said.
The indictments say law enforcement officers provided armed escort
services on multiple occasions to an FBI agent posing as a member of a
Mexican drug cartel. The indictments allege the officers understood they
were helping to transport 25 kilograms (55 pounds) of cocaine through
Mississippi Delta counties and into Memphis. Some of the officers also
provided escort services to protect the transportation of drug proceeds.
Gaston and Williams are alleged to have received bribes in exchange for
giving the operations their “blessing,” one indictment said. It also
alleged that Gaston attempted to disguise the payments as campaign
contributions, but did not report them as required by law.
Federal officials said the investigation began when people who had been
arrested complained about having to pay bribes to various individuals.
“Law enforcement is only effective when the community they protect can
trust the law enforcement officers are honestly serving the community’s
interests," said Robert Eikhoff, special agent in charge of the FBI’s
Jackson Field Office. “This type of corruption strikes at the heart of
the community."
Nineteen of the 20 people indicted are also charged with violating
federal gun laws.
In addition to the two sheriffs, those charged include: Brandon Addison,
Javery Howard, Truron Grayson, Sean Williams, Dexture Franklin, Wendell
Johnson, Marcus Nolan, Aasahn Roach, Jeremy Sallis, Torio Chaz Wiseman,
Pierre Lakes, Derrik Wallace, Marquivious Bankhead, Chaka Gaines,
Martavis Moore, Jamario Sanford, Marvin Flowers and Dequarian Smith.
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The seal of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is displayed at its
headquarters in Washington, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Jose Luis
Magana, File)
Court records show that the federal defender’s office is
representing 16 of the 20 people charged, including the two
sheriffs. The federal defender's office said it does not comment on
pending matters. Attempts to reach the other four at phone numbers
listed for them were unsuccessful.
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said in a statement that he was
disappointed to learn of the allegations.
“The law must apply equally to everyone regardless of the title or
position they hold,” he wrote. “Know that if you betray the people’s
trust in Mississippi, you will face consequences.”
Multiple Mississippi law enforcement agencies and sheriffs have
faced federal scrutiny in recent years.
In 2024, the former Hinds County Sheriff Marshand Crisler was
convicted of accepting $9,500 in bribes and knowingly providing
ammunition to a convicted felon. The same year, former Noxubee
County Sheriff Terry Grassaree pleaded guilty to making false
statements to the FBI while being questioned about requesting and
receiving nude photos from a female inmate.
William Brewer, a former Tallahatchie County sheriff, was sentenced
to six years in prison in 2019 for extorting bribes from a drug
dealer.
In 2023, six law enforcement officers pleaded guilty to state and
federal charges for torturing two Black men, a case that sparked a
Department of Justice investigation into the Rankin County Sheriff’s
Office. A similar DOJ probe concluded last year that officers of the
Lexington Police Department discriminated against Black people.
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