Donald Trump announced on Monday that he had issued an unconditional pardon to a former Virginia sheriff who was convicted on federal fraud and bribery charges.
Scott Jenkins, 53, had served as the sheriff of Culpeper county in northern Virginia for 12 years, having been elected in 2011 and re-elected twice.
In 2024, a jury found him guilty of accepting more than $75,000 in bribes in exchange for appointing several northern Virginia businessmen as auxiliary deputy sheriffs within his office.
He was convicted of one count of conspiracy, four counts of honest services fraud, and seven counts of bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds.
In March 2025, Jenkins was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison.
According to prosecutors, Jenkins accepted bribes from at least eight people, including two undercover FBI agents, in the form of cash and campaign contributions.
Prosecutors say that he issued official badges and credentials in return, allowing the individuals to avoid traffic tickets and carry concealed firearms without a permit.
Three people – Rick Rahim, Fredric Gumbinner and James Metcalf – pleaded guilty to secondary roles in the case, with prosecutors saying Jenkins accepted bribes from them.
In a post on Truth Social on Monday, Trump defended Jenkins calling him a “victim of an overzealous” justice department during Joe Biden’s presidency. Trump said Jenkins “doesn’t deserve to spend a single day in jail”.
Trump also criticized the judge who oversaw the case, alleging that Jenkins was prevented from presenting “evidence to support himself” and was “shut down” during proceedings.
After his conviction, Jenkins reportedly appealed directly to the Trump administration for clemency.
Jenkins has become only the latest person to receive a pardon from Trump about fourth months into his second presidency.
On Trump’s first day in office, he pardoned or commuted the punishments of about 1,500 people involved in the January 6 2021 attack on Congress, including some convicted of violent offenses.
Since then, Trump has also issued pardons to others such as Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the illegal online drug marketplace the Silk Road; and former Democratic Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, who was convicted of federal corruption charges, including attempting to sell an appointment to the US Senate seat left vacant by Barack Obama’s ascent to the presidency in 2009.
In March, Trump pardoned three co-founders of cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX, who pleaded guilty in 2022 to violations of the Bank Secrecy Act.
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