JSU president among 17 arrested in prostitution sting
CLINTON, Miss. (WLBT) - William Bynum, the president of Jackson State University, was arrested in Clinton this weekend.
Bynum, 57, faces charges of procuring services of a prostitute, false statement of identity, and simple possession of marijuana.
Bynum was arrested as part of a sting of arrests handled by Clinton police detectives.
Bynum resigned as president Monday morning.
The Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning called an emergency meeting to determine a new JSU president.
Detectives made 17 arrests over the weekend on prostitution charges, including eight felonies, after making contact through the dark web.
“An ad was online and they saw that ad,” said Chief Hayman. “They called and set this up and with our undercover officers."
Another arrest made was Shonda McCarthy, who is listed as a JSU professor.
The full list of arrests include:
- Holly Ann Wheaton, age 35, of Springfield, Tennessee: Prostitution
- Steve Hampton, age 57, of Jackson, Mississippi: Promoting Prostitution, Possession of Crack Cocaine, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia
- Anthony Bowman, age 48, of Vicksburg, Mississippi: Procuring Services of a Prostitute
- William Bynum Jr., age 57, of Jackson, Mississippi: Procuring Services of a Prostitute, False Statement of Identity, and Simple Possession of Marijuana.
- Fredrick Robinson, age 41, of Jackson, Mississippi: Promoting Prostitution
- Sierra Case, age 23, of Jackson, Mississippi: Prostitution
- Sheena Stanford, age 35, of Jackson, Mississippi: Promoting Prostitution
- Taylor Ducre, age 30, of Angie, Louisiana: Prostitution and Possession of Cocaine
- Eric Jackson, age 34, of Jackson, Mississippi: Promoting Prostitution
- Naketa Williams, age 37, of Jackson, Mississippi: Prostitution
- Shonda McCarthy, age 46, of Jackson, Mississippi: Procuring Services of a Prostitute and Possession of Marijuana while Operating a Motor Vehicle.
- Rosella Brown, age 25, of Canton, Mississippi: Prostitution
- Alexis Miller, age 23, of Memphis, Tennessee: Conspiracy to Promote Prostitution
- Temeela Palmer, age 31, of Memphis, Tennessee: Prostitution and Conspiracy to Promote Prostitution
- Joseph Jones, age 30, of Memphis, Tennessee: Conspiracy to Promote Prostitution
- Jesus Porrata, age 31, of Memphis, Tennessee: Promoting Prostitution
Bynum has served as president since 2017. Many were opposed to IHL’s selection of Bynum as president.
“The last long term president we had was Dr. John Peoples, and we’ve had a lot of in and outs since then,” said JSU alumnus Dr. Ivory Phillips. “They were almost always people who were from elsewhere with very little knowledge of Jackson, Jackson State and its history.”
Police said there is not a prostitution problem in Clinton despite the arrests. They said the prostitution agreements were made online and the offenders came to Clinton where they were arrested.
Police said they have evidence that two of the arrests of Memphians were part of a multi-state ring, but they are still investigating that possibility.
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