Culpeper County Sheriff Scott Jenkins found himself on the wrong side of the law and will soon be in federal prison. After prosecutors convince the jury, that is. Selling special deputy badges can be considered fraud and conspiracy at the federal level.
Sheriff charged with conspiracy
The sheriff of Culpeper County, Virginia didn’t look happy when they cuffed and printed him. According to his indictment, 51-year-old Scott Howard Jenkins allegedly handed out deputy badges in exchange for money to help fund his reelection campaign.
He had help from three other men which makes it “conspiracy.” The U.S. attorney’s office for the Western District of Virginia seems to run a much more efficient operation than the one in Delaware.
Court documents note that beginning around April of 2019, Sheriff Jenkins “accepted cash bribes and bribes in the form of campaign contributions totaling at least $72,500.”
His “donors” were listed as: “Rick Tariq Rahim, 55, of Great Falls, Fredric Gumbinner, 64, of Fairfax, James Metcalf, 60, of Manassas, and at least five others.” What Jenkins didn’t know was that two of those other five were undercover feds.
In exchange for the cash, Sheriff Jenkins appointed each “as auxiliary deputy sheriffs, a sworn law enforcement position.” That appointment brought some special perks after Jenkins issued the standard Culpeper County Sheriff’s Office badges and identification cards.
The paperwork explains “Jenkins told, or caused others to tell, those who paid bribes that the law enforcement credentials authorized them to carry concealed firearms in all 50 states without obtaining a permit.” Sure, that’s worth nine grand.
Make it go away
Sheriff Jenkins isn’t related to Joe Biden, so he’ll actually be prosecuted for doing what Joe and Hunter will walk away from clean. Just like the owner of Burisma, Rick Rahim approached Jenkins with a bribe to make a problem of his go away. After forking over a generous campaign contribution for the fancy gun permit, he still couldn’t use it.
“Jenkins is also accused of assisting Rahim in gaining approval for a petition to restore his firearms rights filed in Culpeper County Circuit Court that falsely stated Rahim resided in the county, the indictment said, in exchange for bribes.”
Just like Joe Biden, U.S. Attorney Christopher Kavanaugh points out that Jenkins “not only violated federal law but also violated the faith and trust placed in him by the citizens.”
Unlike his counterpart in Delaware, the Virginia prosecutor understands that “our elected officials are expected to uphold the rule of law, not abuse their power for their own personal, financial gain.” The sheriff has been formally charged with “one count of conspiracy, four counts of honest-services mail and wire fraud, and eight counts of federal programs bribery.”
His friend Rahim is charged with “one count of conspiracy, three counts of honest-services mail and wire fraud, and three counts of federal programs bribery.” The other two named defendants, Gumbinner and Metcalf, “are charged with one count of conspiracy, one count of honest-services wire fraud, and two counts of federal programs bribery.” Three of the five others will face similar charges.
The county needs to change their website. The sheriff had been described as “a recognized thought leader in the areas of Second Amendment rights, secure communities, constitutional government, and law enforcement.” By thought leader, they must have meant “sneaky.“
