Granville sheriff suspended while case against him plays out

Wilkins' representative, Thomas C. Manning, released a statement Monday after an emergency meeting of the Granville County Board of Commissioners.

"Sheriff Wilkins denies the allegations of wrongdoing, and has agreed to the suspension while he prepares for trial. A Granville County Jury will hear and decide the case," the statement said.

Wilkins has been sheriff since 2009 and was re-elected to a four-year term in 2018. By law, he can remain sheriff while his case plays out. On Monday, he consented to be suspended from that post pending the disposition of his criminal charges.

Deputy Sheriff Sherwood Boyd will temporarily fulfill the duties of sheriff, according to Granville County attorney James C. Wrenn Jr.

The indictment has residents concerned that corruption runs deeper.

"If you’re the top official, trying to do something like that, imagine what’s up under you," said Shawn Smith.

Many others declined to speak on camera, saying only that the Wilkins they know is a good man.

In a grand jury indictment handed down last week, Wilkins is accused of telling someone to kill former Deputy Joshua Freeman, telling the person to "take care of it" and "the only way you gonna stop him is kill him." The indictment also alleges that the sheriff then withheld knowledge of a threat against Freeman.

Freeman worked for the Granville County Sheriff's Office from November 2011 until August 2014, days before the actions outlined in the indictment allegedly occurred. At the time, he was let go because "his services are no longer needed," Wilkins wrote in his termination letter.

"No one is above the law. It is always painful when someone who has the public trust faces these types of allegations for voters who put them in that place," Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman, no relation to Joshua Freeman, said.

Her office will prosecute the charges after Granville County District Attorney Michael Waters had to step aside from the investigation due to a conflict of interest.

The charges date to August 2014, when, according to the indictment, Wilkins ignored a "a credible threat made by an individual known to the Sheriff to imminently kill Joshua Freeman at a certain place and time in Granville County."

The indictment says that the person threatening Joshua Freeman even showed Wilkins the gun he planned to use and that Wilkins failed to take it away.

According to the indictment, Wilkins also "counseled the individual how to commit the murder," telling him not to talk and assuring him that Wilkins would not give him away to any investigation that followed.

Wilkins has been under investigation by the State Bureau of Investigation and the FBI for months, Freeman said. She said she pursued the obstruction charges because she could it more easily prove them than conspiracy or solicitation to commit murder.

"It's important in these cases that you walk them down the middle, that you don't overcharge, that you be fair," she said, noting that the case is five years old and no actual attempt was made on Joshua Freeman's life.

"Any time you have someone who is sworn to uphold the public trust, to protect their community, to investigate and report crimes, allegedly engage in this type of conduct, it is something that needs to be brought to justice. and so we will continue to follow the evidence in this case," she said.

"Quite frankly, it did not get to the top of their investigative list," Lorrin Freeman said to explain why charges weren't filed in the case for more than five years.

A second investigation into allegations concerning the Granville County Sheriff’s Office’s accounting practices and controlled substance interdiction efforts is ongoing.

"It is certainly something that has been on our radar, that we have revisited," Lorrin Freeman said.

Wilkins appeared before a magistrate Monday and was released on $20,000 unsecured bond. His first court date will be Oct. 9 at 9:30 a.m. in Granville County.