Current:Home > reviewsRekubit Exchange:Mississippi mayor says he faces political prosecution with bribery charges -Wealth Empowerment Zone
Rekubit Exchange:Mississippi mayor says he faces political prosecution with bribery charges
Ethermac Exchange View
Date:2025-04-06 18:32:03
JACKSON,Rekubit Exchange Miss. (AP) — The mayor of Mississippi’s capital city said Wednesday that he has been indicted in an alleged bribery operation, and he said it is a “political prosecution” to hurt his 2025 campaign for reelection.
“My legal team has informed me that federal prosecutors have, in fact, indicted me on bribery and related charges,” Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba said in a video statement Wednesday, WJTV-TV and other news outlets reported. “To be clear, I have never accepted a bribe of any type. As mayor, I have always acted in the best interests of the city of Jackson.”
Lumumba, a Democrat, has been mayor since 2017. An indictment was not immediately available Wednesday in federal court electronic records.
The charges come after undercover FBI agents posing as real estate investors invited the mayor to a fundraiser in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, on April 3, WLBT-TV reported. The agents said they wanted to develop property in downtown Jackson and help fund the mayor’s reelection campaign.
Jackson City Council member Angelique Lee, a Democrat, resigned in August and pleaded guilty to federal bribery charges as the result of the same FBI investigation.
Lumumba said his legal team will “vigorously defend me against these charges.”
“We believe this to be a political prosecution against me, primarily designed to destroy my credibility and reputation within the community,” he said.
The Jackson City Council president, Virgi Lindsay, released a statement asking Jackson residents to be patient after the mayor’s indictment, WAPT-TV reported.
“I remind myself that the presumption of innocence is a bedrock principle of our criminal justice system,” said Lindsay, a Democrat. “Therefore, I will remain steadfastly focused on the work of our city council, and trust the legal system to unfold without undue commentary from me.”
veryGood! (45)
Related
- IOC's decision to separate speed climbing from other disciplines paying off
- Taco Bell adds the Cheesy Chicken Crispanada to menu - and chicken nuggets are coming
- The Daily Money: Reinventing the financial aid form
- US women's soccer team captain Lindsey Horan apologizes for saying American fans 'aren't smart'
- A Mississippi company is sentenced for mislabeling cheap seafood as premium local fish
- How the Navy came to protect cargo ships
- Loophole allows man to live rent-free for 5 years in landmark New York hotel
- How ageism against Biden and Trump puts older folks at risk
- Kansas City Chiefs CEO's Daughter Ava Hunt Hospitalized After Falling Down a Mountain
- Prince Harry Shares Royally Sweet Update on His and Meghan Markle’s Kids Archie and Lili
Ranking
- In ‘Nickel Boys,’ striving for a new way to see
- Brian Wilson needs to be put in conservatorship after death of wife, court petition says
- Legendary choreographer Fatima Robinson on moving through changes in dance
- California student charged with attempted murder in suspected plan to carry out high school shooting
- Brianna LaPaglia Reveals The Meaning Behind Her "Chickenfry" Nickname
- The Census Bureau is thinking about how to ask about sex. People have their opinions
- Body believed to be missing 5-year-old Darnell Taylor found in sewer, Ohio police say
- Prince Harry says he's 'grateful' he visited King Charles III amid cancer diagnosis
Recommendation
Daughter of Utah death row inmate navigates complicated dance of grief and healing before execution
Man who told estranged wife ‘If I can’t have them neither can you’ gets life for killing their kids
Atlantic Coast Conference asks court to pause or dismiss Florida State’s lawsuit against league
Heather Rae El Moussa Reacts to Valentine’s Day Backlash With Message on “Pettiness”
Intel's stock did something it hasn't done since 2022
Could Target launch a membership program? Here's who they would be competing against
SpaceX moves incorporation to Texas, as Elon Musk continues to blast Delaware
Caitlin Clark does it! Iowa guard passes Kelsey Plum as NCAA women's basketball top scorer