SHIELDS OF SHAME | GEORGIA FLOCK ABUSE DATABASE | CASE 026 | INVESTIGATION
Jaquarius Tramaine Yarbrough: 1,639 Alleged Flock Searches, a Richmond County Arrest and the POST Certification Questions
A sheriff’s deputy assigned to transportation. An allegation of repeated surveillance of a woman he knew. A routine Flock audit. A disciplinary demotion, a criminal arrest and a Georgia POST record that still showed an active law-enforcement certification months later. The Richmond County case raises difficult questions about both misuse of police surveillance technology and the speed of professional accountability.
The 1,639-search figure: an important reporting distinction
Later accounts of the investigation say Yarbrough searched the license plate of a woman with whom he reportedly had a relationship 1,639 times over several months. But the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office’s original June 25 announcement described multiple unauthorized inquiries involving at least one plate over 28 days, without providing the 1,639 total. The two descriptions may refer to different audit windows or counting methods; the complete original Flock export is needed to establish how they fit together.
That difference matters. Shields of Shame reports the 1,639 figure as an allegation documented in later reporting, not as a total independently verified against every raw query.
Case file
Subject: Jaquarius Tramaine Yarbrough
Agency: Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, Augusta, Georgia
Earlier role: Jailer; subsequently certified deputy
Employment start: September 2017, per historical Georgia POST record
Promotion: Corporal, April 2024
Disciplinary demotion: April 20, 2026, back to Deputy Sheriff
POST investigation opened: April 29, 2026
RCSO Flock audit and arrest: June 25, 2026
Termination: June 25, 2026
Reported charges: Violation of Oath of Office and prohibition on law-enforcement retention of ALPR license plate data
August 19 POST status: File Review Required; Basic Law Enforcement certification listed ACTIVE; no sanctions in that dated snapshot
Current certification or court disposition: Not independently verified
What Richmond County originally announced
According to the sheriff’s office statement reported by WRDW and the Augusta Chronicle, a routine audit of the Flock license plate reader system on June 25, 2026 uncovered access outside official duties. Investigators determined that Yarbrough, then assigned to the Transportation Division, had no authorized law-enforcement need to access the system as part of that assignment. The office said he had conducted multiple inquiries involving at least one license plate over a 28-day period and that the searches were for personal reasons.
The matter was referred to the Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division. Yarbrough was arrested, booked into the Charles B. Webster Detention Center and terminated. The announced charges included violation of oath of office and an offense involving prohibited retention of automated license plate recognition data. These remain accusations unless established through court proceedings.
The woman reportedly targeted
Subsequent reporting described the searched vehicle as belonging to a woman with whom Yarbrough had reportedly been involved romantically, and alleged that he continued monitoring her after the relationship ended. The woman should not be publicly identified without a clear public-interest need and careful consideration of her privacy. The reported 1,639-search figure and personal relationship are material investigative allegations; they are not substitutes for a complete sworn affidavit, interview recording or audit export.
To establish the pattern conclusively, investigators and journalists need the exact dates and times of each query, the plates entered, the user credentials, the search reasons, the cameras and results returned, and whether information was exported or shared. Search volume alone cannot tell the full story of how the data was used.
A disciplinary demotion before the arrest
Shields of Shame obtained a historical Georgia POST report showing that Yarbrough had been promoted to Corporal in April 2024, but was demoted for disciplinary reasons on April 20, 2026, returning to the rank of Deputy Sheriff. POST opened an investigation into him on April 29, nine days later. The Flock audit and arrest did not occur until June 25.
Those dates raise a critical question: Did the April demotion and POST referral involve the same alleged Flock misconduct, or an unrelated disciplinary matter? The available chronology does not answer that. It would be misleading to claim the April actions were caused by the later-publicized Flock searches without the disciplinary paperwork and POST referral.
The POST file: employment termination did not immediately mean revocation
The POST record generated August 19, 2026, lists Yarbrough’s termination on June 25 and an overall status of File Review Required. It shows his Basic Law Enforcement certification as ACTIVE and no sanctions in the record’s sanctions section at that time. This is a dated historical snapshot, not confirmation of current eligibility or the eventual outcome of POST proceedings.
The record also reflects more than 1,000 hours of law-enforcement training, including ethics, professionalism, de-escalation, use of force, field training, supervisory instruction and evidence handling. Training history provides context for the officer’s experience; it does not by itself prove knowledge of a specific Flock policy or resolve the alleged conduct.
Read the complete Georgia POST record PDF ↗
Court records: follow the docket, not just the arrest
A court docket can establish the actual charges filed, dates of hearings, motions, bond conditions and case disposition. A screenshot is only a snapshot of the docket at the time captured. Shields of Shame is preserving the supplied image while seeking the current docket, charging documents and any final judgment. An arrest does not mean a conviction, and a filed charge may later be amended, dismissed or resolved in court.
The investigation widened after June 25
On July 20, 2026, the sheriff’s office announced three additional Flock-related arrests: Lieutenant John McKenzie, Investigator Curtis Hoskins and Deputy Joshua Johnson. Each was accused of using license plate reader data for personal rather than legitimate law-enforcement purposes, and all three were terminated. These are separate allegations against different employees; none proves Yarbrough’s guilt.
The later cases make Richmond County an especially important test of whether audits were regular, whether supervisors acted promptly on unusual searches, and whether the same access controls applied across divisions and ranks. The public should be able to distinguish the first suspicious query, the first alert, the first review and the eventual referral for investigation.
Chronology of documented events
- September 2017: Yarbrough begins service with Richmond County, initially as a jailer.
- April 2024: Promoted to Corporal.
- April 20, 2026: Demoted for disciplinary reasons to Deputy Sheriff; relation to Flock allegations unverified.
- April 29: Georgia POST opens an investigation.
- June 25: Sheriff’s Office audits Flock, investigates Yarbrough, terminates employment and arrests him.
- June 26–27: Local news reports the agency’s 28-day audit description.
- July 20: Three other Richmond County officers are arrested in separate Flock-related cases.
- August 19: POST profile shows file review required, active Basic Law Enforcement certification and no listed sanctions.
- October 12: Current court disposition and POST outcome require updated verification.
Original exhibits and case images
Sources and related investigations
Original Shields of Shame investigation and POST reporting ↗
WRDW — sheriff’s original 28-day audit account ↗
WSB-TV — arrest and agency statement ↗
CBS Atlanta — three additional July 20 arrests ↗
Related Shields of Shame case — Curtis Hoskins ↗
Shields of Shame Flock audit and open-records toolkit ↗
Records that can settle the unresolved questions
- Flock audit: Full Yarbrough user-account log, all queries and timestamps, case numbers, search reasons, plate identifiers, exports, alerts and access termination date
- Counting method: Reconcile the reported 1,639 searches over months with the original 28-day audit description
- April discipline: Demotion order, internal investigation, personnel findings and April 29 POST referral to determine whether those events were related to Flock
- June investigation: Criminal Investigation Division report, recorded interviews, arrest warrant and sworn affidavit
- Court: Complete updated docket, charging instrument, motions and final disposition
- POST: Current certification history, investigation file and any final council action
- RCSO oversight: Flock permissions for Transportation Division employees, audit frequency, supervisor review history and disciplinary policy
Frequently asked questions
Did Yarbrough search a plate 1,639 times?
That figure appears in subsequent reporting about the case. The sheriff’s initial statement described multiple personal-purpose inquiries over 28 days without a total. The complete audit is needed to reconcile both accounts.
Was he fired and arrested?
Yes. Richmond County publicly announced both actions on June 25, 2026.
Was the April demotion for Flock misuse?
The historical POST record documents a disciplinary demotion, but the reason has not been independently tied to the June Flock case.
Did Georgia POST revoke his certification?
The August 19 historical report still listed Basic Law Enforcement as active and did not list sanctions. It cannot establish current status.
Was he convicted?
No final criminal disposition was independently verified for this report. The allegations are not findings of guilt, and Yarbrough is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Updated October 12, 2026. Shields of Shame distinguishes official statements, reported allegations, dated POST records and unresolved court outcomes.