Attorney General Alan Wilson announces new and additional State Grand Jury charges alleging public corruption by former Williamsburg Co. Supervisor Tiffany Cooks

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) - South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced today the return of a sixteen-count indictment by the South Carolina State Grand Jury alleging new and additional counts of public corruption against former elected Williamsburg County Supervisor Tiffany Teonta Cooks. Cooks and Williamsburg County Sheriff Stephen Renard Gardner were also indicted by the State Jury in March for various corruption offenses, and Sheriff Gardner was then suspended by order of Governor McMaster.

The State Grand Jury issued an indictment of Tiffany Cooks for the following offenses:

     2025-GS-47-11 (Williamsburg County)

• Count 1: Official Misconduct in Office, Common Law: 0-10 Years
• Count 2: Offering Anything of Value to Influence Action of Public Official or Employee, Ethics Act Violation, § 8-13-705: 0-10 years and/or $0-$10,000
• Count 3: Embezzlement of Public Funds, Value $10K or More, § 16-13-210: 0-10 years and a fine in the discretion of the court
• Count 4: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 5: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 6: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 7: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 8: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 9: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 10: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 11: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 12: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 13: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 14: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 15: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500
• Count 16: Acceptance of Rebates or Extra Compensation, § 16-9-230: 3 mos – 5 years and $100 - $500

The new indictments generally allege that former Supervisor Cooks “obtain[ed] personal profit and benefit to herself by having government funds, above and beyond her legitimate salary, improperly paid to her in part by having the money routed to her through payments in addition to her salary for alleged participation in ‘community projects.’”  The indictments also generally allege that Cooks “improperly offer[ed] and g[a]ve thousands of dollars of government funds to herself and other officials and employees of Williamsburg County beyond their legitimate salaries through additional pay for alleged participation in ‘community projects,’ with the intent of influencing the discharge of their official duties, for their aid, assistance, collusion with, and allowance of fraud on Williamsburg County government, and to induce them to perform acts and fail to perform acts in violation of their official duties.”

Former Supervisor Cooks had previously been indicted in March for the following offenses:

     2025-GS-47-05 (Williamsburg County)

• Count 1: Criminal Conspiracy, § 16-7-410: 0 – 5 years and/or fine of up to $5000
• Count 3: Misconduct in Office, Common Law: 0-10 years
• Count 5: Offering Anything of Value to Influence Action of Public Official Ethics Act Violation, § 8-13-705: 0-10 years and/or $0-$10,000
• Count 6: Embezzlement, § 16-13-210: 0-10 years and a fine in the discretion of the court
• Count 9: Money Laundering, Value $20,000 but Less Than $100,000, § 16-9-230: 0-10 years

The March indictments generally alleged that former Supervisor Cooks conspired a “scheme to improperly pay thousands of dollars of government funds to Gardner, and avoid taxes or withholdings on the amounts paid, by routing the government money to Gardner under the guise of checks written to a third party.” The March indictments also alleged that Sheriff Gardner “secretly obtain[ed]” and Cooks “secretly provide[d] personal profit and benefit to Stephen Renard Gardner by having government funds, above and beyond Gardner’s legitimate salary, improperly paid to him.”

The cases were investigated by the South Carolina State Grand Jury, which functions in partnership with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and the South Carolina Attorney General’s State Grand Jury Section. The cases will be prosecuted by the Chief Attorney of the State Grand Jury Section Senior Assistant Deputy Attorney General S. Creighton Waters, Assistant Attorney General Savanna Goude, and Assistant Attorney General Walt Whitmire.

Attorney General Wilson stressed that all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law.