Home Columbia Press Releases 2010 Lee County Sheriff E.J. Melvin Arrested with Six Others on Federal Drug Conspiracy Charges
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Lee County Sheriff E.J. Melvin Arrested with Six Others on Federal Drug Conspiracy Charges

U.S. Attorney’s Office May 01, 2010
  • District of South Carolina (803) 929-3000

COLUMBIA, SC—Acting United States Attorney Kevin F. McDonald, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI David Thomas, and SLED Director Reggie Lloyd announced today that teams of federal and state agents executed federal search and arrest warrants early Saturday morning, and arrested seven individuals, including Lee County Sheriff Edgar Jerome “E.J.” Melvin, age 47, of Bishopville, on federal drug conspiracy charges.

Melvin has served as the Sheriff for Lee County, South Carolina, since 2001.

Also arrested Saturday morning in connection with the case were Brenda

LaShawn Ellerby, age 26, Antonio Holloman, age 23, Larry Williams, age 51, Eric Andre Hickman, age 34, Anthony Lee Williams, age 37, and Sheldon Maurice Bradley, age 24, all of Bishopville.

Melvin and the others arrested Saturday are charged in federal warrants with conspiracy since 2006 to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and 50 grams or more of crack in South Carolina, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 846.

The federal arrest warrants were issued earlier this week under seal, and the Complaints and supporting Affidavits leading to the arrest warrants were filed under seal and will remain sealed until the defendants make an initial appearance in federal court in Columbia on Monday. Because the matter is sealed, no further information concerning the case will be made available until the seal is lifted in court.

The maximum penalty each defendant could receive is life imprisonment and a fine of $4 million dollars. Federal statutes also call for mandatory minimum terms of imprisonment for at least ten years.

Mr. McDonald stated, “The law-abiding people of Lee County expect their Sheriff to likewise observe and uphold the law. When he fails to do that, and indeed commits crimes as we have alleged in this case, the citizens are his victims. Lee County taxpayers certainly don’t deserve corrupt law enforcement in exchange for their tax dollars.”

FBI Special Agent in Charge David Tomas stated, “The vast majority of public officials – both elected and appointed – are honest in their work and committed to serving their fellow citizens. Unfortunately, a small percentage abuse the public trust. Public corruption is different from other crimes. It does not just strike at the heart of good government – it can strike at the security of our communities and our nation. Public corruption erodes public confidence, and undermines the strength of our democracy.”

SLED Director Reggie Lloyd stated, “When a law enforcement officer uses his official position to advance a criminal purpose, his community suffers. We must act swiftly and decisively to remove corrupt officers, and restore the public’s faith in law enforcement. SLED is committed to working with our federal partners to root out public corruption at all levels, but particularly in law enforcement.”

Mr. McDonald stated that additional arrests are expected in the case, which was investigated by the FBI and SLED. Assistance on the arrests this morning was provided by the Florence County Sheriff’s Department. Mr. McDonald has assigned the case to Assistant United States Attorneys J.D. Rowell, Mark C. Moore, and Debbie Barbier of the Columbia office for prosecution.

The Acting United States Attorney stated that all charges are merely accusations and that all defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

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