The Eagle

Former Inkster mayor sentenced to prison for soliciting bribes

Former Inkster Mayor Patrick Wimberly was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison last week following his guilty plea on public corruption charges.

Wimberly, 50, entered a guilty plea to charges he accepted $50,000 in bribes while serving as mayor of Inkster from 2019 through 2023.

United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison and Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said they were pleased with the verdict. Court documents accused Wimberly of demanding $100,000 in cash payments in the spring of 2022 to facilitate the sale of property owned by the city to an outside party.

“Public officials who act in their own best interests, motivated by greed, betray the trust of their communities and the general public,” Ison said. “We will continue to aggressively prosecute corrupt public officials for their illegal actions.”

Prosecutors claimed that Wimberly was provided with monthly cash bribes to secure the purchase of the property by a buyer referred to as Person A in court documents. The monthly payments started at $5,000 but Wimberly demanded, and Person A agreed, to eventually increase that amount to $10,000. Person A increased the monthly payments to $10,000, giving Wimberly $50,000 in cash for the purpose of winning the bid for the property. Agents from the FBI intervened before the property could be transferred to the buyer, according to court documents.

The bribery charge, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 666, carries a maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine of $250,000.

“Investigating public corruption is a primary concern and priority of the FBI in Michigan,” said  Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan. The former City of Inkster Mayor Patrick Wimberly’s guilty plea is a step forward in reminding public officials that they will be held accountable for their actions and should always operate with the highest level of integrity. Members of the FBI’s Detroit Area Corruption Task Force will continue to investigate any allegations of criminal misconduct from our public officials, in an effort to maintain the public’s trust.”