U.S. census official sentenced to prison for bribery, fraud

A former supervisory official with the U.S. Census Bureau has been sentenced to two years in prison, followed by a year of supervised release, for conspiring with a subcontractor to receive $790,000 in kickbacks. 

She was also ordered to forfeit the proceeds of the scheme.

On April 2, Camille Jones, 47, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, pleaded guilty to a criminal information charging her with conspiracy to commit bribery and honest services fraud in connection with a procurement fraud scheme.

According to court documents, as part of her guilty plea, Ms Jones admitted that she steered a large employee assistance programme contract to a prime contractor and a subcontracting company, YMJ Consulting, which is owned by Ms Jones’s relative, Yolanda Jones.  

The contract was worth millions of dollars. In exchange for steering the contract and modifications, Ms Jones received kickbacks from YMJ Consulting and the subcontractor.

Additionally, Ms Jones attempted to obstruct the investigation by drafting a service agreement between YMJ Consulting and a mental health company she owned, to make the kickbacks appear to be legitimate consulting payments between the two companies. 

Both Ms Jones and her relative signed the agreement in 2024, but backdated it to 2020. Yolanda Jones then provided the document to law enforcement during the investigation.

Ms Jones further admitted that she used her official position to share the Census Bureau’s confidential procurement information with another government contractor. While receiving preferential treatment, the contractor hired another one of Ms Jones’s relatives for a minimal-work job. Ms Jones largely performed the work, but the relative received $83,000.

On August 14, 2025, Ms (Yolanda) Jones pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery and honest services fraud. She is awaiting sentencing.