How an FBI corruption probe in Tallahassee is similar to the Jackson, MS bribery scandal

In 2015, two undercover FBI agents posed as crooked developers and infiltrated Tallahassee City Hall by offering bribes to elected officials in exchange for their support in favor of the "developers" for coveted real estate projects. Sound familiar?

That years-long undercover FBI investigation — named "Operation Capital Currency" — into the city government in Tallahassee, Florida, offers striking similarities to Jackson's ongoing bribery scandal. Both center around alleged bribes from "developers" to elected officials. And, like Jackson, Tallahassee is a state capital.

Is Jackson the next target of the "Operation Capital Currency" sequel?

Long after undercover agents slipped out of Tallahassee, the investigation dragged on for years, resulting in convictions and federal prison time for a Tallahassee businessman, an elected official and his aide, according to reports from the Tallahassee Democrat, which covered the scandal extensively.

The Jackson bribery scandal has already seen one elected official, former Ward 2 Councilwoman Angelique Lee, resign and plead guilty to a conspiracy to commit bribery charge in August. A second conspirator, Sherik Marve' Smith, pleaded guilty to the same charge in October. When Smith pleaded guilty, court documents revealed he and another conspirator helped facilitate bribes from two "developers" to two elected Jackson officials who have not been identified.

Below is a look at some of the similarities between the Tallahassee and Jackson corruption scandals.

Phony 'developers' meet with city leaders and officials

Tallahassee's corruption scandal kicked off in 2015, when an undercover FBI agent posing as a developer and using the alias Mike Miller came to town. Miller, whose assumed identity was discovered by the Tallahassee Democrat, started rubbing shoulders with Tallahassee businessmen and political leaders for the next year-and-a-half, including meeting former mayor and Florida's 2018 Democratic candidate for governor, Andrew Gillum.

Miller, along with another undercover agent who posed as a medical marijuana investor known as Michael Sweet, also started meeting with Tallahassee businessman John Burnette and then Tallahassee City Commissioner and former mayor Scott Maddox. The agents professed an interest in two developments — a parcel of land just outside of Tallahassee's city limits called Fallschase, and another that was a piece of city-owned property called Myers Park.

The agents encouraged Tallahassee officials to “annex” Fallschase in order to increase its value. After that, they aimed to convince officials to approve a Request for Proposal, inviting potential developers to bid on the Myers Park project.

A timeline of the Jackson scandal: Over the course of months, Jackson's bribery scandal has unfolded. See the timeline

Jackson's downtown hotel project: How does Jackson's proposed convention center hotel fit into the Angelique Lee bribery case?

Similarly, in Jackson, undercover FBI agents posed as Nashville developers, known only as "Individual 1" and "Individual 2" in court documents, faked an interest in bidding on the city's long sought-after downtown hotel development across the street from the Jackson Convention Complex.

Jackson's FBI office did not respond to a request for comment about "Operation Capital Currency" and if Jackson is the next target.

Jackson has been trying to build the hotel since the mid-2000s, according to a previous statement from Jackson Spokesperson Melissa Payne. The latest attempt started this year when the city issued a statement of qualifications (SOQ) for the project on Jan. 31.

Of the three total responses to Jackson's SOQ, one was a company called "Facility Solutions Team LLC," a business filed in March by Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens. In May, Owens' offices and business were raided by the FBI, who also took a trip to Jackson City Hall.

Owens, in a statement through his lawyer released in August following Lee's conviction, said he met with out-of-town developers about "the possibility of building a convention center hotel in Jackson."

"He believed them and after multiple conversations, agreed to help them. It turns out they were operatives for the FBI," Owens' statement reads. "Given that status of the investigation, I don’t think it’s appropriate to say anything else at this juncture."

Three members of the Jackson City Council, Ward 1 Councilman Ashby Foote, Ward 5 Councilman Vernon Hartley and Ward 7 Councilwoman and Council President Virgi Lindsay, have also said they met with Owens and out-of-town developers. Ward 4 Councilman Brian Grizzell said he met one developer in passing; Ward 3 Councilman Kenneth Stokes said he might have received a call. All have denied taking bribes and none could verify if they were the agents that bribed Lee. Ward 6 Councilman Aaron Banks has not responded to repeated requests for comment on the bribery scandal or if he met with developers and Owens.

Bribes in exchange for votes

In the Tallahassee case, recorded conversations in July and September 2016 reveal Burnette, the Tallahassee businessman, suggested to the undercover agents they would have to pay-to-play if they wanted in on the two development projects.

Following Burnette's orders, the agents paid Tallahassee City Commissioner Maddox for his vote in favor of the agents' bogus development company, Southern Pines Development, for the Fallschase and Myers Park projects. Burnette said Maddox was “very transactional” and wanted his “piece of pie.”

Maddox could “convince” his colleagues, Burnette said, if the agents paid “$10,000 a month the next 3 years for [Maddox] to lobby” on their behalf for the two development projects. The undercover agents agreed to do so, sending Maddox multiple payments of $10,000 to "Governance Services," a company run by Maddox’s girlfriend at the time, Paige Carter-Smith.

Court documents in Jackson's bribery scandal show the undercover agents met multiple times in 2024 with Smith, "Unindicted Co-conspirator A" and "Unindicted Co-conspirator B," who is one of the unidentified Jackson elected officials.

During a Jan. 11 meeting in Jackson, "Unindicted Co-conspirator B," like Maddox in Tallahassee, requested payment in exchange for their vote in support of the undercover agents' phony company for Jackson's hotel project. Taking bribes from undercover agents in exchange for a vote was also what former Jackson Councilwoman Lee pleaded guilty to in August. "You've got more votes coming," Lee reportedly told the undercover agents during a meeting on March 27.

A month later, according to court documents, on Feb. 11, "Unindicted Co-conspirator B" accepted a $10,000 cash bribe, driver services and an employment opportunity for a family member from the undercover agents. Lee accepted nearly $20,000 in "cash, deposits and other gifts," according to court documents, including spending approximately $6,000 at a luxury store using one of the agents' credit cards.

Maddox and Carter-Smith pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery and were sentenced to federal prison in 2021. Carter-Smith was released in 2022; Maddox left prison in 2023. Burnette fought the charge, but he was convicted by a jury in 2021 on one count of extortion, two counts of honest services mail fraud, one Travel Act violation and lying to the government. Burnette was sentenced to three years in federal prison and was released in October 2023.

Lee and Smith have yet to be sentenced, but both are facing a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for the conspiracy to commit bribery charge.

Deadlines and campaign contributions

The Tallahassee sting also saw the two undercover FBI agents arrange a trip to Las Vegas for themselves, Burnette, and Maddox in December 2016. During the trip, Burnette said Maddox would help ensure the agents win their pursuit of the Tallahassee development projects, including delaying an RFP for the undercover agents' benefit.

"There is also evidence that during the Las Vegas trip, one of the undercover agents bought Maddox either a private dance or oral sex (or perhaps both) at a strip club," according to a court transcript.

It's unclear if undercover FBI agents took or offered to take Jackson officials on any trips. Existing court records from the case don't refer to any trips, but much of the evidence in the case has been sealed.

In Jackson, the undercover agents met again with Smith, "Unindicted Co-conspirator A" and "Unindicted Co-conspirator B," on March 28 to ask if the deadline for the hotel project's SOQ would be moved back up. The city had previously extended it to late April to increase competition. This is where the second Jackson elected official comes into play, known only as "Unindicted Co-conspirator C."

"Unindicted Co-conspirator C" directed a city employee to move up the deadline on April 2, a day after receiving a $10,000 campaign contribution for their "reelection committee" on April 1, according to court documents. Smith, in an attempt to hide the true source of the funds, wrote the check knowing he would be reimbursed by the undercover agents.

Mississippi law states "no member of the council shall give orders to any employee or subordinate of a municipality other than the council member's personal staff," which includes a clerk of the council and deputy clerks. Council members "shall deal with the municipal departments and personnel solely through the mayor," the statute states.

Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba has remained quiet on the bribery scandal, acknowledging the investigation during an Oct. 21 press conference. Lumumba repeated the phrase "I have never conspired with anyone to commit a crime" to reporters' questions, but said he did meet Smith on more than one occasion.

On Monday, he again offered no comment to questions on the scandal at a press conference but responded to the Clarion Ledger's question on how the city plans to move forward.

"I would say that we're still working. I would say that it does not stop us from what we do each and everyday," Lumumba said. "I would say — just as we have as a mantra over our heads in my office everyday — our work is our defense. And so, we have had a life-long commitment towards working towards people, have never violated that, would never violate our love, trust and commitment to the people of Jackson."

Tallahassee mayor's involvement – and ultimate acquittal

Though the undercover FBI agents made their way to Tallahassee during then-mayor Gillum's second year in office, he was charged with only one count in relation to the FBI's undercover investigation.

Gillum, mayor from 2014 to 2018, was charged with making false statements, allegedly lying to the FBI during an interview in June 2017, around the same time he announced his bid for Florida governor. He lied about a trip to New York City he took in August 2016 where he accepted a ticket to the Broadway musical "Hamilton." Who offered him the ticket? Miller, the undercover FBI agent.

Gillum never mentioned that fact and insisted the ticket came from his brother, Marcus Gillum, according to the Tallahassee Democrat.

In 2022, Gillum was indicted, along with his close advisor Sharon Lettman-Hicks. All in all, Gillum was charged with 19 counts of wire fraud, one count of attempt and conspiracy to commit mail fraud and making false statements — about the NYC trip.

But most of Gillum's charges were in connection with his campaign to become Florida governor in 2018. The indictment alleged Gillum was diverting campaign money to a company controlled by Lettman-Hicks.

Gillum was later acquitted on the charge that he lied to the FBI about the “Hamilton” ticket and other gifts he received from the undercover agents during the NYC trip on May 4, 2023. The jury also deadlocked after five days of deliberating on the charges involving the misuse of campaign funds. On May 15, all charges against Gillum and Lettman-Hicks were dismissed.

The acquittal, partial mistrial and outright dismissal marked a major defeat for the government and its long-running probe.

"The prosecution took its best shot to convict him and lost," prominent criminal attorney Alan Dershowitz wrote in a column to the Democrat. "Not only did he beat back the false statement count, but it appears that the jury — a cross section of Northern Florida — overwhelmingly rejected the rest of the government's case."

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: How an FBI probe in Tallahassee is similar to Jackson MS bribery scandal