Tennessee Man Sentenced for Aiding Memphis Police Department Officer in Destroying Evidence Related to On-Duty Fatal Shooting

WASHINGTON - Joshua M. Rogers, 33, of Tennessee was sentenced yesterday to 56 months of in prison for his role in destroying evidence related to a police officer's fatal shooting of a man identified by the initials R.H.

Documents filed in connection with the defendant's plea established that Rogers' co-defendant, Patric J. Ferguson, was on duty as an officer with the Memphis Police Department when Ferguson kidnapped and fatally shot R.H. on January 5, 2021. The defendant aided Ferguson in covering up the fatal shooting. The defendant assisted Ferguson as he purchased chains, padlocks, and cinderblocks from a store and affixed them around the victim's body. Once the victim's body was weighed down by the items, the defendant and Ferguson drove to the Wolf River in Memphis, where they disposed of the victim's body.

Ferguson was sentenced to 38 years in prison on Dec. 1.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant for the Western District of Tennessee, and FBI Special Agent in Charge Joseph E. Carrico of the FBI Nashville Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI's Nashville Field Office and the Memphis Police Department investigated the case.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Hartridge for the Western District of Tennessee and Trial Attorneys Tenette Smith and Sarah Armstrong of the Civil Rights Division's Criminal Section.

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