A former leading lawman from the Upstate was in court Thursday morning. Disgraced former Spartanburg County Sheriff Chuck Wright was in Greenville for a hearing at the federal courthouse in Greenville.
Wright faces up to two decades in prison after he pleaded guilty last October to multiple charges, including conspiracy and obtaining controlled substances by misrepresentation, and wire fraud.
The charges against Wright involve his nearly two-decade tenure as sheriff. He is accused of stealing money from the agency’s benevolence fund to purchase illegal opioids.
Two others, former Sheriff's Office Chaplain Amos Durham and former County Employee Lawson Watson face charges in connection to the case. The judge told them that he would allow them to reconsider their pleas, but all three stood by their guilty pleas.
Durham faces up to five years in prison for working with Wright and Watson faces up to 20 years in prison for his role in the scheme. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Watson received more than 200,000 dollars in pay and benefits for work he did not perform.
Wright is expected to be sentenced at a later date, that date has not yet been set.