Who is Denver Golmon? Officer accused of exposing MS cockfighting informant

A federal judge denied bond in June for Hammond Police Officer Denver Keith Golmon, who is accused of retaliating against a confidential informant in a Mississippi Coast cockfighting investigation. Prosecutors say the 37-year-old officer used his badge and police resources to target the informant who helped expose his uncle’s cockfighting operation.

FULL STORY: HSI agent: La. officer used his badge to target informant in MS cockfighting case

Here are key takeaways:

• A federal judge denied bond for Golmon after prosecutors argued he posed a danger to the public and the informant he exposed. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, with possible enhanced penalties for committing the crimes as a law enforcement officer.
• Golmon’s connection to the case began with his uncle Bert Lester, who was arrested in February 2025 and convicted for cockfighting derbies in Harrison County. Authorities say Golmon’s gamecocks participated in matches, and he received training on how to rile up the birds before fights.
• A Homeland Security Investigations agent testified that Golmon used the National Crime Information Center database to access information on people unrelated to law enforcement matters, allegedly to help create fraudulent immigration documents for undocumented immigrants.
• Investigators recovered a Facebook video appearing to show Golmon using a city-issued laptop to record evidence from the cockfighting investigation. In messages, he called the informant “always a snake” and a “rat” and encouraged others to share the video.
• On April 29, 2026, Golmon allegedly contacted a fellow Hammond officer and provided a photo and information about the informant to have him detained on immigration violations. Two officers took the informant into custody at his workplace before later releasing him.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The full story in the link at top was reported, written and edited entirely by journalists.

Margaret Baker

Sun Herald

601-909-0541

Margaret is an investigative reporter whose search for truth exposed corrupt sheriffs, a police chief and various jailers and led to the first prosecution of a federal hate crime for the murder of a transgendered person. She worked on the Sun Herald’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Hurricane Katrina team. When she pursues a big story, she is relentless.