POPLARVILLE – Jury deliberations are expected to begin today in the trial of a former Columbia man accused of leading a plot to kidnap businessman Tommy Duff.
Victor Mitchell, 45, faces an array of charges that hold the potential to put him behind bars for the rest of his life.
Mitchell took the stand in his own defense Wednesday inside the Pearl River County Courthouse and alleged that two other men actually conspired against him, Willie Lampley and Howard Cameron.
Lampley is who called law enforcement and Duff on the night in 2016 when the kidnapping was allegedly going to take place, and Cameron was arrested in Hattiesburg that night along with Mitchell and a third man, Glen Evans.
Cameron, who testified he met Mitchell when Cameron was working as a dealer at a Gulf Coast casino where Mitchell did high-stakes gambling, had worked out an agreement with prosecutors where he pleaded guilty and received 25 years with 13 of the years suspended in exchange for his cooperation.
Circuit Judge Claiborne “Buddy” McDonald read jury instructions this morning with closing arguments to follow before jurors began deliberations.
Mitchell is charged with four counts:
Count 1: Conspiracy to commit kidnapping, conspiracy to commit sexual battery and conspiracy to commit extortion;
Count 2: Attempted kidnapping;
Count 3: Attempted sexual battery;
Count 4: Attempted extortion.
If a jury finds him guilty on all four counts, Mitchell could possibly receive life plus 50 years.
The trial began Monday with jury selection and opening statements at the courthouse in Poplarville, where it was moved because of pre-trial publicity and Duff’s prominence.
Testimony began Tuesday with law enforcement officers and Duff followed by Lampley.
Lampley said he met Mitchell on a job site Nov. 13 or No. 14, 2016, when he approached Mitchell about a job. Lampley said he saw equipment on the lot and wanted to see if Mitchell needed someone to drive the backhoe. Mitchell told Lampley he did have a job for him, and the two met the next day in the parking lot of Chili’s Restaurant on U.S. 98 in Lamar County, according to Lampley.
Lampley said he thought Mitchell wanted Lampley to beat someone up, but Mitchell explained he wanted someone kidnapped. Lampley said he needed to think about it and he went home and talked to his mother. His mother recommended he go to the police, he said.
Lampley testified that he called Detective Dale Bounds with the Hattiesburg Police Department and reported it.
Mitchell and Lampley met again, this time at a Huddle House, according to Lampley. Lampley said Mitchell put phones in the vehicles while they talked. Mitchell told Lampley, according to Lampley’s testimony, that someone owed him money. Mitchell explained the plans was to kidnap, sexually assault Duff and post it on social media to humiliate the business man. Mitchell wanted Lampley to find a place for the assault to take place.
On Friday, Nov. 18, Lampley said he called Southern Tire Mart and left a message with Duff’s secretary that he needed to talk to Duff and it was very important. Duff returned Lampley’s call. Lampley told Duff that Duff did not know him but someone wanted to kidnap Duff.
On the evening in question, Lampley stayed with the police department and exchanged several calls with Mitchell, which were recorded by law enforcement.
Once prosecutors finished questioning Lampley Tuesday evening, court was recessed until Wednesday morning, when one of Mitchell’s attorneys, Tangi Carter, questioned Lampley.
Lampley was questioned about his criminal past, including currently being incarcerated. Carter referenced several crimes, including a federal charge of grand larceny, probation violation, defrauding an innkeeper, failed drug tests and failure to report to his probation officer. He is also in jail now for contempt of court and is facing an additional charge of false pretense.
Carter asked him if he committed the crimes she referenced and he said yes. He admitted his past has not be pretty and said he has had issues with drugs but has never been involved in kidnapping.
Carter showed text messages where Lampley’s family members called him a liar. He said he said one of those texts referenced was his ex-wife’s mother and they just talk like that.
Defense attorneys had a recording played where Lampley is talking to Michael Reed, who was Mitchell’s former attorney, about receiving compensation for his testimony. Reed advises Lampley on the tape that it is illegal to pay for testimony and tells Lampley he needs to talk to his own attorney.
Lampley said at the time he was very angry. He said he was dealing with the death of his uncle and his truck was totaled in a tornado.
Lampley ended his testimony with, “All of this is from me just trying to get a job.”
Cameron testified next.
He said he worked as a dealer at the Beau Rivage Casino, which is where he met Mitchell one night while he was working at a craps table. He said he would give Mitchell tips on how to play. Cameron testified he has seen Mitchell lose $70,000 and has seen Mitchell win $120,000 at a time. He said Mitchell tipped well, sometimes $3,000 to $5,000. Cameron said he saw Mitchell lose more than he would win.
Cameron also sometimes worked at the Hard Rock Casino, and he said one night Mitchell came in to the Hard Rock upset because he had been on a losing streak at the Beau Rivage. Cameron told him that sometimes happens.
Cameron said he thought he and Mitchell had a connection through grief from Mitchell’s first wife’s suicide and Cameron had lost his oldest daughter.
In April 2016, Cameron said Mitchell offered him a job where he could make $150,000 but offered no details. When he saw Mitchell again in either June or July, Mitchell told him again he needed to get with Cameron.
In August 2016, Cameron testified Mitchell came to his house in Biloxi and told Cameron a guy ran into his Porsche and did not pay up and Mitchell wanted Cameron to beat him up. Cameron responded that he doesn’t fight and Mitchell asked if he knew anyone and Cameron said yes, Glen Evans.
Mitchell met with Cameron and Evans and told them everything, Cameron said. Mitchell finally said the name of the person who he was after was Tommy Duff. Neither Cameron nor Evans knew who Duff was, according to Cameron.
Mitchell said he wanted to humiliate Duff and explained what he wanted done. Evans said it could be done. At the end of the meeting Mitchell gave both of the men $500 and gave Cameron an extra $300 to buy a phone and a camera, Cameron said.
At the end of August, Cameron said he and Evans went to Mitchell’s house and Mitchell took them on a drive through a nice neighborhood in Lamar County and showed them Duff’s home. They also went to a warehouse Duff owned and then to a house where Duff’s girlfriend lived. Mitchell said they could stake the girlfriend’s house. Cameron said at this time he and Evans thought they were doing the kidnapping. Mitchell already told Cameron he would pay him $150,000 and he told Evans he would give him $75,000, Cameron said. Before Cameron and Evans departed, Mitchell gave them both $500 apiece, according to Cameron.
Mitchell met with Cameron and Evans more than once to discuss possible ways to kidnap Duff like placing a tracker on Duff’s car and rushing into Duff’s home on Halloween, Cameron said. Cameron and Evans said no to rushing into the home, Cameron said.
Cameron testified Evans was the one who went to Party City and bought the disguises and Cameron had a woman buy the sex toy.
On one of the visits to Mitchell’s house, Cameron said he and Evans saw a stack of bills and realized then Mitchell was planning on extorting Duff. He and Evans asked about Duff going to the police and Mitchell told them not to worry.
Mitchell told Cameron and Evans he had two men coming from Jackson to do the kidnapping, Cameron said.
On the night of Nov. 18, Cameron said he received word that everything was going down that night. Cameron said he believed Duff had been kidnapped. He and Evans met Mitchell at the drag strip where Evans got into Mitchell’s Jeep with Mitchell, Cameron said. Cameron followed Mitchell and Evans to the meeting place Mitchell had set up with Lampley where the three were arrested, he said.
Cameron testified his life is destroyed. His career is over because by law felons cannot work as casino dealers.
“I am ashamed to be here. This is so out of my character,” Cameron said.
Under redirect Cameron said Mitchell had a picture of Duff on his phone.
At 2 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon the prosecution rested its case.
The defense made a motion for a directed verdict, which is a common legal challenge where the defense says the prosecution did not meet its burden of proof for the charges and that the case should be dismissed immediately. The defense challenged the venue of Lamar County for count 1; for counts two and three it challenged the attempted kidnapping and sexual battery, saying Duff was never in any danger for these things to have happened, and for count four (attempted extortion) Mitchell had no sensitive material to extort Duff with, defense attorneys said.
Circuit Judge Claiborne “Buddy” McDonald overruled the motion, stating the bulk of the crimes were in Lamar County including making plans and driving to Duff’s subdivision and the girlfriend’s home in Lamar County. For counts two and three McDonald ruled the only reason why Duff was never in danger was because police discovered the plot, and for count four the judge said had the plans actually happened Mitchell would then have the sensitive material to extort Duff.
Against the advice of his own lawyers, Mitchell then took the stand.
He said he was in a crash on March 29, 2016, with a KLLM truck (KLLM is one of the companies owned by Duff Capital Investors). After the crash Mitchell said he was being followed by a private investigator and that he felt like the only one who would do that was Duff.
Mitchell said he had a civil conversation with Duff at Southern Tire Mart, but he never asked Duff to buy him out of his business.
He also said he was contacted by the Porsche dealership in Jackson that his car was ready and the repair costs would be $16,000 and was advised that KLLM said the company would not pay for the damage. He said he contacted an attorney in New Orleans to deal with the accident.
He admitted he met Cameron at the Beau Rivage and that Cameron has seen him gamble large amounts of money. He also said Cameron has a friend who knew Duff and a relative of Duff’s, but Mitchell said Cameron never identified the friend.
He said Lampley did come to the job site looking for a job but said Lampley tried to get him to buy televisions and computers. He said he agreed to meet Lampley Nov. 14 for a MacBook laptop computer for $400. Mitchell said they met at Best Buy, not at Chili’s, and Lampley stole his $400 and Lampley carries three or four phones on him.
Mitchell said on Nov. 18 Lampley and Cameron argued back and forth all day.
Mitchell also said he never conspired to do any of the things he is accused of and said he only went out to Glendale (the Hattiesburg subdivision where they were arrested) because he said Lampley wanted to rob him and Cameron.
Under cross examination, Mitchell said he had met Tommy Duff one time. He admitted to the text messages sent and received and that he once lost $78,000 at a casino.
The defense then rested its case, and the prosecution called back Howard Cameron, who testified he didn’t know Duff, any of Duff’s relatives or Lampley.
Next Lampley was called back. He was asked if he knew Tommy Duff, and he said the the first time he heard his name was the second day he and Mitchell met. He was asked if he took $400 from Mitchell, and he said he did not get any money from Mitchell.
He was asked whose idea all of this was, and Lampley answered Mitchell.
Caption: Circuit Judge Claiborne "Buddy" McDonald reads jury instructions Thursday morning, Sept. 26, 2019, at the Pearl River County Courthouse in Poplarville during the trial of Victor Mitchell.
