Overview
- Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge and announced his resignation, a decision reported Monday that ends his tenure this week and sets his sentencing for Oct. 15, 2026.
- Federal court papers say the probe began with an undercover FBI sting in October 2023 in which two agents posed as developers and documented meetings, payments and trips including a meeting on a Fort Lauderdale yacht.
- Prosecutors allege Owens solicited and accepted at least $115,000 in cash and arranged more than $80,000 in payments to others, with court filings charging that $50,000 was funneled toward the former mayor's re-election effort and $10,000 was paid to a councilman.
- Former Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba and ex-City Councilman Aaron Banks remain federally charged with bribery and related counts, and they are scheduled to stand trial in mid-July 2026; prior defendants pleaded guilty in 2024.
- Local leaders and the U.S. Attorney's Office say the case has damaged public trust in city government and could reshape how federal prosecutors use cooperating witnesses and how the Hinds County DA's Office handles routine prosecutions going forward.