A North Carolina Judge Is Going to Jail for Bribing the FBI With a Case of Beer

A North Carolina judge is going to jail after asking an FBI agent for text message transcripts and bribing him with beer.

Not Available Lead
Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

Not Available Lead

In a storyline pulled straight from some of TV’s most scandalous dramas, a North Carolina judge is going to the big house after attempting to bribe an FBI agent with a case of beer (Bud Light to exact).

Arnold Ogden Jones II first approached agent Matthew Miller when he suspected that his wife was texting another man. Jones asked Miller if he could illegally obtain a transcript of those texts, and stressed the clandestine nature of what he was asking. “I want down low — see what you can do without drawing attention,” court records show Jones telling Miller. “This involves family, so I don’t want anyone to know.”

When the topic of compensation arose, Jones asked Miller to name his price. Miller responded with “a couple cases of beer,” adding that “just to keep things simple, I’m a Bud Light guy.”

“I can handle that!!!” Jones answered.

What Jones didn’t know was that the he was being set up by the FBI from the get-go. Just one day after meeting with Miller to obtain a disk that he believed contained text message transcripts, Jones was arrested at his home. After a five day trial, it took the jury a brisk 30 minutes to convict Jones of superseding indictment with paying bribes, paying gratuities, and attempted corrupt influence of an official proceeding.

The future does not look bright for Jones, who faces a whopping 37 years in prison. “The jury’s verdict affirms a bedrock principle of the rule of law,” said U.S. Attorney John Stuart. “No person holding a [position] of public trust in our legal system is permitted to subvert that system for his own personal objectives.”

Jones meanwhile, has turned to religion to help him through this difficult time. “I’m facing a personal trial and engaged in a re-election campaign,” he wrote on Facebook mid-trial. “But on our journey we all face difficulties. We should never forget we don’t walk alone.”

Latest in Life