A Tennessee sheriff was indicted for selling e-cigarettes in the jail he operated, the U.S. Department of Justice said Friday.
Rutherford County Sheriff Robert F. Arnold partnered with his deputy and his uncle to start a limited liability company that distributed e-cigarettes to jail inmates, according to a Department of Justice report. The company—called JailCigs LLC—allegedly sold 10,500 e-cigarettes and made more than $150,000 in revenue.
The 14-count indictment includes charges of wire fraud, bribery, extortion, conspiracy, and obstruction of justice. Tennessee state officials and the FBI are both investigating, according to the Department of Justice.
The accused have denied involvement. Arnold told a local news outlet that he had listed JailCigs as a source of income by mistake.
