- “Don’t go too crazy, but have a f–ing great time.” FBI operatives plied Lee with cash and a shopping spree in exchange for her support of a fictitious hotel project in a bribery sting. By all indications, Lee’s plea is but prologue to a bigger story.
Standing before federal District Judge Dan Jordan yesterday, former Jackson City Councilwoman Angelique Lee pled guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery. Prosecutors explained to the Court how Lee accepted cash and a shopping trip in exchange for supporting a fictitious hotel development.
Lee is likely the first domino to fall in a larger story. Federal public corruption cases almost always start with the smallest fish and end with the silver tuna.
How it Started
In May of this year, the FBI conducted raids on the office of Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens, along with multiple businesses owned by Owens. Federal law enforcement visited Jackson City Hall, where they reportedly sought conversations with Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba and Jackson City Councilman Aaron Banks.
The FBI seized boxes of documents and phones during the raids. In their wake, a common story — one centered on the allegation that certain Jackson and Hinds county officials had accepted bribes to support a phony hotel development — began circulating among the Jackson courthouse and political class. Persistent rumors of shopping sprees, private planes and yachts, strip clubs, campaign contributions, and loads of cash followed.
Pieced together, the spun tale read like something out of Donnie Brasco.
Lee’s Role in the Jackson corruption scandal
The U.S. Attorney’s office confirmed at least three components of the wild story as true in open court yesterday. The rest remains to be seen.
According to the unsealed “criminal information” and statements made by prosecutors during Lee’s guilty plea, the FBI sent two operatives to Jackson. The pair posed as real estate developers from the Nashville-area seeking to grease the skids to close a Jackson road and build a hotel.
In exchange for her support, Lee received $10,000 funneled through a person identified only as “Co-conspirator A” to pay off a portion of her campaign debt in February of this year.
In March, Lee received $3,000 in cash directly from one of the FBI operatives. Prosecutors read a transcript of the exchange between Lee and one of the two operatives in court yesterday. During the conversation, the operative made clear why the payment was being made — in exchange for votes. Lee promised not only to support the hotel venture, but to help acquire the other city council votes necessary.
Finally, Lee received a shopping spree, purchasing approximately $6,000 worth of luxury items at Maison Weiss. When supplying his credit card for the trip, the FBI operative told Lee “don’t go too crazy, but have a f–ing great time.” A list of the items seized by the government included a pair of Valentino shoes and a Christian Louboutin handbag.
Hours before pleading guilty, Lee resigned her seat on the Jackson City Council. Sentencing in her case was scheduled for November 13, 2024. She faces up to 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Owens Next?
The criminal information filed in Lee’s case states she “did knowingly and willfully conspire and agree with Unindicted Co-conspirator A and others known and unknown to the Grand Jury.” The other co-conspirators were not named. But two things are almost assuredly true: Lee is cooperating with the government and other indictments will follow.
As Lee pled guilty, attention turned back to Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens. On March 19th, Owens formed Facility Solutions Team, LLC. Filings list Owens as both the registered agent and the only officer of the business.
Nine days prior to legal formation, on March 10th, Facility Solutions submitted a proposal to build the fictitious hotel in response to a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) by the City of Jackson. The proposal was filed as a joint venture between Facility Solutions and Contour Development, a Michigan company. The RFQ was first reported by WLBT.
In a statement released to Front Office Sports on Wednesday, Owens said:
“It is our understanding that the federal investigation does not involve Jody’s service as District Attorney. For the past 15 years, Jody has also been engaged in real estate development. This sort of private business activity is permitted by the law even during the time a person serves as a D.A. For the moment, we have no further comment as we await the outcome of that investigation.”
The distinction between Owens as a D.A. and businessman
The distinction drawn between Owens the D.A. and Owens the businessman is interesting for two reasons. First, in protecting the integrity of the D.A.’s office, the statement suggests concerns with Owens’ private business dealings. Otherwise, you would probably just deny wrongdoing across the board. Second, it could be an early indicator of a legal strategy.
Rob McDuff, Owens’ attorney, told Mississippi Today in a statement, “Two gentlemen who claimed they were successful large-scale developers with their own development company raised with him the possibility of building a convention center hotel in Jackson. He [Owens] believed them, and after multiple conversations, agreed to help them. It turns out they were operatives for the FBI.”
Owens has not been publicly charged with any crime at this point.
Unanswered Questions
One question in the case is how and why the FBI chose to target Jackson for this sting? Multiple sources have told Magnolia Tribune that both District Attorney Owens and Jackson Mayor Lumumba were under the scrutiny of federal law enforcement prior to the hotel sting operation.
Whatever the case, there were some precipitating facts that led the FBI to believe that Jackson officials were susceptible to bribery. These types of stings generally do not occur out of the blue.
Another question is the extent to which Mayor Lumumba was involved, if at all. Lumumba has not been publicly charged with any crime.
At the time of the FBI raids in May, Lumumba denied claims his home had been searched. “There was no raid on my home or anything like that,” he told reporters at the time. “Other than that, I have no comment, no knowledge.”
In a statement on the resignation of Lee, Lumumba said, “Today, I was informed of the resignation of Councilwoman Angelique Lee from the Jackson City Council. While I am saddened to see her step down, I fully respect her decision and support her in her future endeavors. On behalf of the entire city, I want to express my deep gratitude for her service and dedication.”
A previous version of this story incorrectly state that Owens was not mentioned in the RFQ proposal. Information concerning Owens appears on page 23.
