Memphis Shelby County Schools (MSCS) confirmed on Friday that Aashan Roach, who was arrested on Thursday as part of an FBI investigation in Mississippi, worked as a security officer for the school district since 2018, and was placed on administrative leave on Friday.
The case was announced on Thursday by the U.S. Department of Justice, who revealed a total of 20 individuals were arrested as part of an alleged “drug trafficking conspiracy in the Mississippi delta,” including 14 “local law enforcement officials in the Mississippi Delta.”
Roach’s role as an “officer” with MSCS was confirmed by the district to Fox 13 on Friday, when the outlet reported the district confirmed it was “aware of the situation,” and that Roach was employed since 2018.
The Tennessee Star contacted the district to clarify whether Roach worked as a School Resource Officer (SRO), or in another security capacity, and to ask whether he had contact with students, but did not receive an immediate response.
He was placed on administrative leave, MSCS told the outlet, which reported that the indictment alleges Roach traveled to Florida alongside other defendants to meet with individuals they understood to be associated with a cartel, but were actually undercover FBI agents.
Roach allegedly also accepted a $6,500 bribe for his role in the transportation of cocaine, according to Fox 13.
In a Thursday press conference, FBI Co-Deputy Director Andrew Bailey confirmed his agency’s allegation that those indicted, “took bribes to facilitate the distribution of controlled substances,” during his agency’s investigation.
“This corruption permeated all levels. It extended across multiple counties and multiple jurisdictions in the state of Mississippi and beyond. But the Department of Justice and its subcomponent the FBI will not allow the wrongdoing and wrongdoers to get away with it,” said Bailey. “We will stop these kinds of disgraceful and shameful abuses of public office, and will prove that we will not tolerate corruption amongst America’s criminal justice system.”
In its press release, the FBI stated that the investigation spanned years and crossed multiple jurisdictions. The arrests were facilitated by the FBI using Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams in Nashville, Birmingham, Dallas, Jackson, Little Rock, Louisville, Mobile, New Orleans, and Oklahoma City on Thursday.
It is unclear whether the arrest of Roach occurred in Memphis, which has seen nearly a 50 percent drop in reports of serious crime as the FBI is deployed as part of the federal Memphis Safe Task Force.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Police on Scene” by Shelby County Sheriff’s Department.
