William Brewer has resigned as sheriff of Tallahatchie County, and the county's top decision-making body is set to meet Thursday in special session to discuss a replacement.
Brewer, 58, publicly announced his decision to step down during a Tuesday afternoon hearing in federal court at Oxford. However, Brewer's formal letter of resignation had been emailed to Tallahatchie County officials nearly one-and-a-half hours prior to that 1:30 p.m. federal hearing.
The Tallahatchie County Board of Supervisors is set to meet Thursday morning at 9:30 at the courthouse in Charleston to discuss selection of a person who would serve until a new sheriff can be elected during the 2019 regularly scheduled county elections.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Roy Percy set Brewer's bond at $25,000, which was posted Monday afternoon, and Brewer was released under terms of house arrest after Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Mims withdrew the government's request for pre-trial detention.
Brewer, 58, of near Oakland, had been arrested Friday in Oxford and charged with federal narcotics trafficking, and extortion and bribery under color of official right in violation of the Hobbs Act, for alleged crimes spanning a period of 15 years.
The alleged drug offenses are said to have occurred from June 2003 through June 12, 2018, while the alleged extortion and bribery crimes are said to have been ongoing from June 2003 through July 26, 2018, according to the Aug. 10 criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court by an FBI agent.
If convicted, Brewer faces up to 20 years in prison on each count, along with fines ranging from $250,000 to $1 million per count.
