Jackson, Miss. – Wesley Hughes, 28, of Greenwood, Mississippi, was indicted by a Federal Grand Jury on July 14, 2020 and charged with accepting bribes, announced United States Attorney Mike Hurst, James F. Boyersmith, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General (“DOJ-OIG”) Miami Field Office, and Michelle A. Sutphin, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) in Mississippi.
According to the indictment, Hughes, who was employed as a Federal Corrections Officer, accepted money from an individual in return for providing contraband to a federal inmate at the Yazoo City Federal Correctional Complex.
Hughes will have his initial court appearance before United States Magistrate Judge Linda R. Anderson in Jackson today at 1:00 p.m.
If convicted, Hughes faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.
The case was investigated by the DOJ-OIG and the FBI Jackson Division. The Federal Bureau of Prisons also assisted with the investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dave Fulcher.
The public is reminded that an indictment is merely a charge and should not be considered as evidence of guilt. Every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.