GREENSBORO, N.C. – A Durham resident was sentenced Friday in federal court for lying to agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation asking questions about a drive-by shooting, announced Acting United States Attorney Sandra J. Hairston of the Middle District of North Carolina.
CHAKERA ALEXANDRIA MANGUM, age 29, was charged with lying to agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation about the location of evidence in a drive-by shooting, as well as the location of the suspect. She pled guilty on March 9, 2021.
MANGUM was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Catherine C. Eagles, in Greensboro. MANGUM was sentenced to 2 years in prison and 3 years of supervised release and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment. One of MANGUM’s special conditions of supervised release prohibits her association with gang members.
According to publicly-filed court documents, on November 14, 2020, an off-duty deputy with the Durham County Sheriff’s Office was stopped at a stoplight on Highway 98 in Durham when another car pulled alongside him and the front passenger rolled down his window and opened fire. The suspect car then sped away. Investigators identified a suspect and located him that evening driving a Dodge Challenger belonging to MANGUM. When federal investigators questioned MANGUM that same evening and the next day, she made multiple false statements regarding the suspect’s location on November 14 and the location of her Dodge Challenger, which the suspect had been driving. MANGUM did so despite multiple warnings from federal investigators that lying to a federal agent during the course of an investigation is a federal crime.
“Here is a simple truth we all learned as children: lying is a bad decision with serious consequences,” said Acting United States Attorney Hairston. “Lying to federal law enforcement agents is a felony that can land you in jail, even if you had no part in the crime being investigated.”
“Chakera Mangum knowingly interfered with the capture of a dangerous fugitive. Despite being repeatedly warned she could face federal charges, she stuck to her story which delayed the FBI’s efforts to get the fugitive into custody. This should be a lesson for anyone who thinks protecting an accused shooter is more important than telling law enforcement the truth,” said Robert R. Wells, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Charlotte.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney JoAnna G. McFadden prosecuted the case.
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