Culpeper County Sheriff Scott Jenkins was indicted on federal charges after prosecutors say he took cash bribes and campaign contributions in exchange for police credentials that he said would let buyers carry concealed guns nationwide without permits.
The Justice Department unsealed the indictment against Jenkins on Thursday. Three other men also stand charged.
Jenkins, 51, is accused of accepting cash bribes and bribes in the form of campaign contributions of at least $72,500 from at least eight people, including two undercover FBI agents, since April 2019.
âIn return, Jenkins appointed each of the bribe payors as auxiliary deputy sheriffs, a sworn law-enforcement position, and issued them Culpeper County Sheriffâs Office badges and identification cards,â the Justice Department said in a statement.
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âJenkins told or caused others to tell the bribe payors that those law-enforcement credentials authorized them to carry concealed firearms in all 50 states without obtaining a permit,â the statement continued.
Jenkins was charged with one count of conspiracy, four counts of honest-services mail and wire fraud, and eight counts of federal programs bribery.
Three Virginia men also charged
Prosecutors named three men who they say paid bribes to Jenkins: Fredric Gumbinner, 64, of Fairfax; James Metcalf, 60, of Manassas; and Rick Tariq Rahim, 55, of Great Falls.
Prosecutors say Jenkins helped Rahim gain approval for a petition to restore his firearms rights. The petition was filed in Culpeper County and falsely stated that Rahim lived there, they say.
The News4 I-Team previously reported that Rahim lost his right to own a gun because of a felony conviction.
Rahim was charged with one count of conspiracy, three counts of honest-services mail and wire fraud, and three counts of federal programs bribery.
Gumbinner and Metcalf each were charged with one count of conspiracy, one count of honest-services wire fraud, and two counts of federal programs bribery.
According to the NBC affiliate in Charlottesville, Rahim, Gumbinner and Metcalf pleaded not guilty in their first court appearance Thursday. Jenkins didn't enter a plea because his attorney wasn't present. The four men are out on bond.
If convicted, Jenkins and the three others could potentially face decades in prison, with maximum penalties of 20 years on each honest-services mail and wire fraud count, 10 years on each federal programs bribery count and five years on the conspiracy count.
The News4 I-Team reached out to Jenkins' attorney, the Culpeper County Sheriff's Office and the county attorney but hasn't heard back yet. News4 also left messages at numbers for the other men involved but hasnât received responses.
Dozens of volunteers deputized
As the News4 I-Team previously reported, the FBI seized $10,000 from Jenkinsâ campaign account in January, amid signs of a larger investigation. Sources with knowledge of the investigation said a number of Culpeper County employees had been subpoenaed to testify to a federal grand jury.
Jenkins and his D.C. lawyer previously declined to comment about the campaign cash seizure or subpoenas.
In May, newly uncovered court documents revealed a federal wiretap of a phone linked to Jenkins. The federal intercept of calls concluded in mid-January.
In searches of court records, the I-Team found 46 auxiliary deputies appointed by Jenkins and sworn in by a circuit court judge. Thatâs more than double the number of auxiliary deputies authorized by a Culpeper County ordinance ânot to exceed fifteen (15) percent of the paid force.â
According to the sheriffâs own general order, auxiliary deputies are supposed to be trained. According to the results of a Virginia Freedom of Information Act request, the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services only has training records for three of the 46 auxiliaries.
A Culpeper sheriffâs general order explains auxiliary deputies will get the same equipment as full-time deputies. The sheriffâs office told the I-Team it could only find records of five auxiliary deputies getting any equipment at all. There are no records of any firearms issued to auxiliary deputies, despite the general order stating the equipment is the same whether deputies are full time or auxiliary.
The general order is clear that each auxiliary deputy is to work 16 hours a month. The sheriffâs office could not provide a single time sheet proving any of the auxiliary deputies had worked even a single hour. Go here for the full story.
Jenkins oversees a staff of 70 and an $8 million budget.
Culpeper is about 70 miles southwest of Washington, D.C.
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Stay with NBC Washington for more details on this developing story.
