Chokwe Antar Lumumba

Chokwe Antar Lumumba served as the mayor of Jackson, Mississippi, from 2017 to 2025. On July 6, 2026, he pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of conspiracy involving bribery, wire fraud, and money laundering. The conviction stems from an FBI undercover operation in which agents posed as real estate developers seeking to build a downtown hotel. Lumumba admitted to accepting $50,000 in campaign contributions in exchange for official actions, specifically directing a city employee to accelerate the bid deadline for the project. Prosecutors alleged that Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens facilitated the scheme by distributing over $80,000 in bribe payments to various local officials, including Lumumba, former councilwoman Angelique Lee, and former councilman Aaron Banks. All these officials subsequently pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges. Lumumba initially maintained his innocence and characterized the prosecution as political. His sentencing is scheduled for October 15, 2026, and he faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. Separate from the bribery conviction, FBI reports filed in court in 2026 revealed historical allegations from a confidential informant, dating from 2017 to 2021, suggesting Lumumba had ties to individuals involved in drug trafficking and money laundering, as well as accusations of failing to report certain campaign contributions. Lumumba was never charged or convicted regarding those specific allegations. Additional FBI monitoring from 2022 explored potential kickback schemes involving local lobbyists, though no indictments or formal accusations of wrongdoing were issued against him in relation to those specific matters.