BURKE COUNTY, Ga. — A south Georgia sheriff is a facing federal indictment on charges of extortion and giving a firearm to a convicted felon.
To cover his legal expenses, Burke County Sheriff Alfonzo Williams created a GoFundMe, but the company said the fundraiser was removed for violating their terms of service.
“The fundraiser was removed because it violated GoFundMe’s Terms of Service, which prohibit fundraising for an alleged financial crime. All donors have been refunded,” a GoFundMe spokesperson told Channel 2 Action News.
The criminal indictment against Williams was announced on July 14, with federal officials saying a grand jury in south Georgia had indicted Williams for five counts of extortion under the color of official right and for transferring a firearm to a convicted felon.
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According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Williams is accused of requesting and accepting monetary payments from five people in exchange for dismissing citations for driving under the influence between August 2021 and April 2022.
The indictment also said Williams allegedly gave a gun to a convicted felon in January 2023. Channel 2 Action News reported when the Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced a preliminary investigation into Williams the same year.
Each extortion charge carries a prison term of up to 20 years, if convicted, as well as what USDOJ said were “substantial financial penalties” and three years of supervised release after any prison time served.
Separately, the federal firearms charge carries up to 15 years in prison if Williams is convicted, as well as more financial penalties and supervised release after completing a potential sentence.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the case is under investigation by both the FBI and GBI.
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