Mark Edward Fuleihan, Public Corruption, South Carolina 2022

Florence, SC --- Former Florence County Sheriff's Lieutenant Mark Edward Fuleihan, 49, of Florence, was sentenced to just over a year in federal prison on Tuesday for his role in a joint investigation into public corruption and illegal gambling operations in the Pee Dee region.

Fuleihan, who previously pleaded guilty for operating an illegal gambling business, is one of nine defendants to be charged in the case and is among eight defendants who have pleaded guilty for their role in the illegal operation.

The investigation, which was led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), began years ago after a request from the Florence County Sheriff's Office.

The case led to SLED's arrest of Fuleihan on April 2, 2020, on a South Carolina State Grand Jury arrest warrant for a state Ethics Act bribery charge, followed by South Carolina State Grand Jury indictments for misconduct in office and Ethics Act bribery charges on May 14, 2020.

Federal charges for obstruction of justice were filed on June 30, 2020, and a federal grand jury indicted Fuleihan on October 20, 2020, for operating an illegal gambling business, conspiracy to obstruct enforcement of state criminal law, and obstruction of an official proceeding.

“We trust our law enforcement officers to protect society and stand against wrongdoing,” said Acting U.S. Attorney M. Rhett DeHart. “When an officer violates that trust, it is imperative that we hold them accountable. I commend our state and federal partners for doing just that in this case. This team was able to dismantle a criminal organization that was bolstered by a crooked cop and to send that officer to prison.”

Fuleihan used his former position to inform those gambling operators about planned law enforcement activity, allowing the operation to continue unchecked.

The evidence presented to the court showed that since at least July 2014, the defendants operated illegal gambling houses throughout Florence and Williamsburg. The gambling organization allowed individuals to play illegal gambling machines, collected monies from those individuals playing, and paid out winnings to those individuals. Approximately $1,000,000 in cash was deposited into the accounts of at least two members of the gambling organization.

Fuleihan was sentenced to just over a year in federal prison, with no further information on the exact duration of the sentence available at this time. He had previously pleaded guilty to operating an illegal gambling business and other related charges.

This case serves as a reminder of the importance of holding law enforcement officers accountable for their actions and the consequences of corruption within the ranks.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sc/pr/former-florence-county-sheriff-s-lieutenant-sentenced-just-over-year-federal-prison-after