Former Shelby County Commissioner Edmund Ford Jr. was sentenced to two years in federal prison in his bribery and tax evasion case.
Ford pleaded guilty to five counts of attempted tax evasion on Feb. 2, just under a year after being indicted for one count of bribery and six counts of attempted tax evasion. There is no parole in the federal system, so Ford will serve the entirety of his sentence.
As part of his plea agreement, one count of attempted tax evasion and the bribery charge were dismissed.
Ford's sentencing was pushed back repeatedly in the wake of his guilty plea. He faced a maximum of 25 years in prison.
Ford turned himself in to federal
officials when his indictment was unsealed on Feb. 28, 2025. The indictment alleged Ford pushed grant money to three nonprofits and, in exchange, those nonprofits spent money with businesses owned and operated by Ford.
The indictment was the culmination of a nearly four-year long investigation into Ford's grant-giving habits. It borrows heavily from reporting done by The Commercial Appeal, including stories that found Ford committed potential ethics violations.
Three nonprofits were named in the indictment.
"On January 1, 2020, Ford Jr sent a text to Individual 1 stating, 'Let's talk more this week re: your nonprofit,'" the indictment read. "On January 7, 2020, Individual 1 sent her email addresses to Ford Jr. Ford Jr replied on January 8, 2020, that he was 'going to send today.' Individual 1 replied on January 9, 2020, 'Got it!' Ford Jr replied, 'GOOD. Let's get you/us that money."
In November 2020, prosecutors say that Ford sponsored and voted in favor of another grant for that same nonprofit. He did not disclose a business relationship. A year later, "Ford Jr instructed individual 1 to draft a check for $16,000 to business 2," the indictment said. In September 2021, they alleged that Ford requested another check be sent to that same business.
"In April 2023, Ford Jr came to individual 1's home," the indictment read. "Ford Jr had a list of nonprofits written down who were going to be granted money, including NPO 1. Ford Jr pointed at the list and said that he would get NPO 1 $30,000 in grant funds to buy computers from him. The sheet of paper had five total nonprofits on it, including NPO 1."
Allegations about the second nonprofit began in 2019, according to the indictment. Prosecutors alleged similar communications between Ford and Nonprofit 2, with an unnamed representative of the nonprofit telling Ford that they needed 20 computers.
Ford's time on the Memphis City Council is also included in the indictment, with much of the same allegations being repeated for each nonprofit.
Prosecutors alleged that Ford has a role in giving nearly $570,000 to the three nonprofits and those nonprofits wrote $251,749.70 in checks to Ford's businesses. Much of that money was alleged to have been transferred to another person's Regions Now Prepaid account, according to the indictment.
"Between April 19, 2022 and June 9, 2022, $23,950 was withdrawn from the prepaid account in cash via ATM withdrawals, primarily in the Midtown and Whitehaven areas of Memphis," the indictment read. "All withdrawals occurred with a debit card ending in 2501 in 32 separate transactions. Most of the cash withdrawals were in the amount of $800, which was under Regions' maximum daily allowance of $808.
"Video footage for many of the transaction dates from April 9, 2022 through June 9, 2022 showed Ford Jr withdrawing cash and driving away in a Chevy Impala registered to Ford Jr."
The six counts of tax evasion date back to 2018, alleging that Ford did not report income to both his computer businesses and consulting firm, that he overstated the total itemized deductions from 2019 through 2022 and that he provided "false donation records" for that same time frame.
The sixth count of tax evasion alleged that Ford "falsely minimized his involvement with E&J Computer Services and Repair and Precise Solutions and Consulting LLC" during an interview with federal agents in May 2023.
Ford was, in the wake of the indictment, quickly placed on leave from his job at the City of Memphis. At the time he served as the city's Senior Financial Literacy Coordinator and provided "virtual and in-person classes on person and business credit, homeownership, and investing," according to his bio on the Shelby County Commission website.
Ford eventually resigned from the Shelby County Commission on Feb. 9, days after he pleaded guilty to the federal case. The resolution recognizing Ford's resignation passed unanimously, with 12 "aye" votes and no discussion or comments on the resolution.
Lucas Finton covers crime, policing, jails, the courts and criminal justice policy for The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached by phone or email: (901)208-3922 and Lucas.Finton@commercialappeal.com, and followed on X @LucasFinton.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Ex-Shelby County commissioner sentenced to 2 years in federal prison
