(NewsNation) — Mississippi law enforcement officers arrested as part of a drug smuggling operation took bribes of more than $30,000, according to court documents.
The arrests were announced Thursday and included two sheriffs among the 14 law enforcement officers indicted for helping drug smugglers traffic narcotics.
Prosecutors say Brandon Addison, of the Hollandale Police Department and Humphreys County Sheriff’s Office, took bribes equal to $37,000; Javery Howard, of the Metcalfe Police Department and Hollandale PD, took bribes totalling $31,000; Milton Gaston, sheriff of Washington County, took $19,500 in bribes; Bruce Williams, sheriff of Humphreys County took $18,000 in bribes; Dexture Frankline, with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, took $16,500 in bribe; Sean Williams, with the Yazoo City Police Department, took $14,000 in bribes and Wendell Johnson, with the Bolivar County Sheriff’s Office took $12,000 in bribes.
Other officers received bribes in lower amounts.
According to the indictment, undercover FBI agents posed as cartel members seeking armed law enforcement escorts for shipments of illegal drugs.
“We’re talking about 14 current or former law enforcement officers … who are alleged to have sold out the public,” FBI Co-Deputy Director Andrew Bailey said at a news conference Thursday. “This corruption permeated all levels. It extended across multiple counties and multiple jurisdictions in the state of Mississippi, and beyond.”
Read the full indictment below: