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MEMPHIS, Tenn.— The FBI executed a search warrant Thursday at the house of County Commissioner Edmund Ford Jr., which is owned by his father, Memphis City Council member Edmund Ford Sr.

FBI spokesperson Joel Siskovic confirmed the bureau had served a search warrant at 917 Summer Shade Lane at 6 a.m. Thursday. The home is in Whitehaven, near Graceland.

Shelby County property records show the house is owned by Edmund and Myrna Ford. Recent campaign finance documents show Ford’s son listed that address as his home.

Shelby County Lee Harris said in a statement that the warrant was issued to “Commissioner Ford” — Edmund Ford Jr.

917 Summer Shade Lane

“Mayor Harris had no prior knowledge of the search warrant served on Commissioner Ford,” said a statement released by the mayor’s spokesperson. “However, everyone, including Mr. Ford, is entitled to the presumption of innocence. Also, I would like to note that the Mayor has been working for some time to advance a series of local reforms and breathe new life into the County’s Ethics Ordinance. Getting serious about these efforts seems more important now than ever. Additional details, if any, about this current investigation will have to come from the investigating agencies.”

The FBI did not specify what the search was for, nor which Ford it pertained to.

But back in 2021, Ford Jr. was investigated for allegations of an ethics violation involving a $450,000 county grant that was approved for local nonprofit Memphis Junior Achievement. Ford’s business sold computers to the group resulting in a $45,000 profit, but Ford allegedly did not properly disclose his dealings with the nonprofit before the vote.

In a statement, Junior Achievement of Memphis and the Mid-South told WREG it is “fully cooperating with the authorities on this matter.”

At the Ford home, we tried asking someone we saw pulling into the garage for answers.

“You need to go home because you ain’t gone get nothing here,” a woman told our reporter. “Nothing here baby, it’s nothing to say.”

Ford Jr. is District 9 commissioner on the Shelby County Commission. Ford Sr. serves as District 6 representative on city council.

WREG tried several times to reach out to the Fords but were unable to get a comment.

Shelby County Commission Chairman Mickell Lowery had this to say about the search:

“We were just notified of this today so this appears to be an ongoing investigation so there is no action needed to be taken by the commission at this time. However we look forward to seeing the end results of this investigation and we’ll take action as needed.”

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