Former Sheriff Chuck Wright, 60, pleaded guilty to three federal charges after admitting he stole nearly $80,000. from the charitable fund of the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Department, South Carolinaand that he also appropriated pain medications that should be destroyed.
According to court documents, Wright admitted to conspiracy to commit robbery, wire fraud and obtaining a controlled substance by misrepresentation.
In a statement released by his attorneys, Wright expressed his regret: “I wasted my dream job with my actions and I apologize to the people of Spartanburg and my brothers in law enforcement.”
The former official, who led the department for years, He assured that he will take full responsibility and that he will never work in the police again.
Corruption within the police force
The federal prosecutor’s office detailed that Wright misappropriated fund intended to help agents in financial difficultieseven falsely claiming he needed money to send an officer to Washington to pay tribute to a fallen comrade. The money ended up in their own accounts.
It was also found that Wright He retained almost 150 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills that he had to dispose of as part of a drug take-back program, and used a blank check from the charitable fund to pay for those drugs to his distributor.
Investigators indicated that many of the former sheriff’s actions occurred while he was dealing with an addiction to painkillers.
One more in a long list
Wright became the 12th South Carolina sheriff to be convicted or plead guilty in the last 15 years for crimes committed in office. Misconduct in those cases has included extortion, cover-ups, bribery and assault.
Federal prosecutor Bryan Stirling said the case demonstrates the authorities’ commitment to combating corruption: “Nothing infuriates a law enforcement officer more than seeing police overstep their bounds.”
Although the three charges combined could carry up to 30 years in prison, Wright is expected to receive a shorter sentence, in addition to paying $440,000 in restitution.
The former sheriff also faces more than 60 charges of ethical violations at the state level, for having used his official credit card for personal expenses, including purchases in the App Store and payments for satellite radio subscriptions.
His federal sentencing date has not yet been set.
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