Virginia senator reacts to federal bribery charges against Culpeper County sheriff

CULPEPER, Va. — Finding a Culpeper County official to publicly discuss the allegations against Sheriff Scott Jenkins may be difficult, but a Virginia senator is sharing his thoughts.

Sen. Bryce Reeves, (R) District 17, said while he only learned of the federal indictment recently, he expects Jenkins to be deemed innocent until proven guilty.

Reeves, who received Jenkins’ endorsement in the past and is a Culpeper County sheriff’s deputy, said the accusations are a “huge surprise.”

“Sheriff Jenkins has been an outspoken advocate for the 2nd Amendment and my prayer and hope is that this isn’t another political indictment for being outspoken,” Reeves told WUSA9.

Jenkins is accused of abusing his power by accepting cash bribes in the form of large campaign contributions.

The alleged bribes from three Virginia businessmen totaled more than $72,000, according to a federal indictment. In return, federal officials said Jenkins appointed each of the men “auxiliary deputy sheriffs” and issued badges and ID cards. The credentials authorized them to carry concealed firearms without obtaining a permit across the country.

Jenkins remains as sheriff amid the allegations with no signs of stepping down from his re-election campaign this year.

“The shock to me is that he’s still going to run again,” Culpeper resident Karen Loving said. “Of course, innocent until proven guilty but I would think with what has gone on before that this it's not a good thing for the county for him to continue on.”

“I mean when you smell a rat, you got to get rid of it before it messes up something,” Culpeper resident Bill Dejarnette added.

In their first meeting on Wednesday morning since the allegations came out, the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors did not address the indictment.

However, Chairperson Gary Deal started the meeting saying, “We may go through some trials or tribulations but no group or person or circumstance or situation is going to make me feel like Culpeper is not the best place to live in this world.”

WUSA9 has reached out to Deal, other members of the board and the city administrator and Jenkins but have not heard back.

In an email to the Culpeper Star-Exponent, Deal said, “I wish to state that the county has no specific knowledge regarding the investigation into these matters, nor any details regarding today’s latest developments, or any comment at this time related to any pending charges. I wish to reiterate that the Culpeper County Sheriff’s Office is a separate and distinct legal entity from the county and is subject to Virginia law as the duly elected Sheriff.”

The US Attorney’s Office said all of the defendants pleaded not guilty. They were released on a personal recognizance bond and cannot leave the country unless it is approved by pretrial services.

A next court date has not been scheduled.