Former Corrections Officer Sentenced

BATON ROUGE, LA—United States Attorney Donald J. Cazayoux, Jr., announced today that Chief U.S. District Court Judge Ralph E. Tyson sentenced former corrections officer ECKNOZZIO C. JACKSON, age 40, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to 21 months’ imprisonment followed by three years’ supervised release for agreeing to accept a $10,000 bribe in exchange for using his position to smuggle cellular telephones to ROBERT THOMPSON, an inmate in the lockdown unit at the Elayn Hunt Correctional Center. THOMPSON used the cellular phones to continue a massive identity theft and corruption scheme involving over 60 victims and intended losses in excess of $20 million.

In February 2010, THOMPSON was sentenced for his leadership of the fraud and corruption scheme, including the bribery of JACKSON, to 309 years in prison, the fourth-longest white collar prison sentence in U.S. history. THOMPSON is currently serving his sentence in a specialized Communication Management Unit located within the maximum security federal penitentiary in Marion, Illinois. The unit is one of only two in the country and is specially designed to deal with inmates who are prone to use communication with the outside to facilitate additional crimes.

The other charged defendants include:

CHARLENE B. JACKSON, age 38, of New Iberia, Louisiana, has pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering. She was sentenced to 15 months in prison.

SEDRIC L. JACKSON, age 37, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, has pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and obstruct justice. He was sentenced to five years in prison.

ZELBONY O. TAYLOR, age 34, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, has pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and obstruct justice. He was sentenced to five years in prison.

DACOBIA L. HAMILTON, age 33, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana has pled guilty to wire fraud. She was sentenced to serve 30 days in prison.

MURKEL L. PARKER, age 35, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, has pled guilty to unauthorized use of an access device. He was sentenced to serve a five-year probation term.

KELVIN ARCHIE, age 42, of Texas, is charged in a bill of information with one count of use of an unauthorized access device.

This investigation is being led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the security and investigations staff of the Elayn Hunt Correctional Center. Many other agencies have assisted in the investigation, including the Madison Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Concordia Parish Sheriff’s Office, the East Feliciana Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Hardeman County, Tennessee Sheriff’s Office, the Bolivar, Tennessee Police Department, the Baton Rouge Police Department, and the Louisiana Department of Corrections.

United States Attorney Cazayoux stated, “This office will remain dedicated to fighting corruption and fraud wherever we find it. This expansive investigation was the result of a dedicated effort by various federal, state, and local law agencies who worked jointly to successfully root out a serious criminal element.”

This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Corey R. Amundson, who serves as the Senior Deputy Criminal Chief, and Assistant United States Attorney Alan A. Stevens.