A regional spokesperson for the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has been placed on administrative leave as part of the criminal investigation of the TBI's former acting director.

Micheal A. Jones has served as the TBI's public information officer for West Tennessee since September 2017.

"In accordance with Tennessee Bureau of Investigation policy, the agency placed Micheal Jones on administrative leave with pay on June 26th, due to his potential involvement in a criminal investigation concerning Jason Locke," TBI spokesperson Josh DeVine told NewsChannel 5 Investigates in an email statement.

It is not clear what connection Jones might have to the criminal investigation.

He was placed on administrative leave the day after former Knoxville police chief David Rausch took over as the TBI director.

Former acting director Jason Locke has been the focus of a criminal investigation into allegations raised by his wife of an extramarital affair -- at taxpayer expense -- with a woman who works in the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services.

Jones previously served as director of communications for that same department.

According to a TBI news release, Jones is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University and the Nashville School of Law, and is a licensed attorney.

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