South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced that the South Carolina State Grand Jury has issued a 10-count indictment related to public corruption in Williamsburg County. The indictment includes charges against Williamsburg County Treasurer Margaret Kimber W. Cooper. Cooper faces allegations of misconduct in office, using her official position for financial gain, and criminal conspiracy.
The State Grand Jury also indicted several other former county officials. These include Tiffany Teonta Cooks, former Williamsburg County Supervisor; Stephen Renard Gardner, suspended Williamsburg County Sheriff; Sharon W. Staggers, former Clerk of Court; and Keonta Dewanda Moore, former Chief of Administration. The indictments allege that the officials accepted payments exceeding their approved salaries between February 2020 and December 2022. The total amount in question is about $398,645.11. The alleged payments were made while other county employees were furloughed.
The investigation was conducted by the South Carolina State Grand Jury in partnership with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and the Attorney General’s State Grand Jury Section. The prosecution will be led by Senior Assistant Deputy Attorney General S. Creighton Waters, Assistant Attorney General Savanna Goude, and Assistant Attorney General Walt Whitmire.
Attorney General Wilson stated: “All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law.”
