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

JACKSON, Mississauga (WLBT) – A Hinds County man has pleaded guilty to a federal bribery charge for his part in a scandal that ensnared a Jackson councilwoman and led to a federal raid on businesses tied to the prosecutor of Hinds County District.

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

He initially pleaded not guilty in U.S. District Court on Thursday, then changed his plea to guilty, according to court records. He was released on $10,000 unsecured bail. As part of his settlement, he will be required to pay back $20,000.

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

The letter of information says Smith conspired with three other unnamed, unindicted individuals to ensure that money from FBI agents posing as developers went 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 Smith was one of two local investors named in a request for qualifications filed with the city of Jackson in March regarding a downtown hotel development of conventions The other was Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens.

That company was Nashville’s 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, and former Councilwoman Angelique Lee.

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 those three other individuals who have not yet been indicted on federal charges, called co-conspirators A, B and C.

According to court documents, Smith and co-conspirator A negotiated and communicated offers of payments from FBI officials to co-conspirators A and C.

The bill also states that Smith and co-conspirator A funneled payments to co-conspirator B in exchange for a vote on a proposed real estate development in the city, and to co-conspirator C to run “a or more city employees to move a term in favor” of the real estate development proposal of individual 1 and person 2.”

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

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

• Unindicted Co-Conspirator A – 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; Owned/controlled bank account through which payments were channeled
• Unindicted co-conspirator B – an elected official in the city of Jackson; received bribes in exchange for his vote on a convention center hotel project
• Unindicted co-conspirator C – an elected official in the city of Jackson; received bribes in exchange for support for a convention center hotel project; Funds were deposited into this co-conspirator’s campaign war chest to direct city employees to modify a deadline to benefit developers.
• Singles 1 and 2 – confidential human sources for the FBI, posing as Nashville developers; provided the money and cash for the bribes, which were channeled through Smith and co-conspirator A

As for the deadline, it was unclear what date the court filings were referring to. However, the records indicate that co-conspirator C directed one or more city employees to move the deadline in question.

The conspiracy took place between October 2023 and May 2024. The city’s last ratings statement was issued in January of this year. It was released months after Jackson received no responses to his previous request for proposals. Two more companies responded to the January request:

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

Smith sent a $10,000 check to “co-conspirator C’s re-election committee using funds from Individuals 1 and 2 after those funds had been sent 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 in and develop property in downtown Jackson.

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

The information bill reveals striking similarities to the bill that was revealed when Lee pleaded guilty to a related bribery charge.

In that case, Lee also received a payment funneled through an account owned by an unidentified, unindicted co-conspirator. He also received $3,000 in cash and went on a $6,000 purchase at a local high-end retailer using an FBI agent’s credit card.

He resigned from 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 should I make a comment?” she asked.

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