According to the indictments, Sharpe, 67, solicited and received at least $20,000 in illegal payments from the South Caro-lina Gamefowl Management Association, an organization that is interested in raising, breeding and fighting game fowl. In return, said federal prosecutors, Sharpe protected the ring from local law enforcement, going so far as to lie to federal and state investigators.

Sharpe denied the charges.

Also indicted was former South Carolina Law Enforcement Division agent Keith Bernard Stokes, 40, of Lexington. Stokes is accused of lying to investigators and providing the group with information about the ongoing investigation.

SLED Chief Robert Stewart said Stokes was fired in February as a result of the probe.

Nine of the charges against Sharpe carry a maximum imprisonment of 20 years and up to a $500,000 fine. The remaining three counts, dealing with alleged lies to investigators, carry a maximum of five years' imprisonment, a $250,000 fine and one year of supervised release. There are no mandatory minimum sentences on the charges.

Both men were released after posting unsecured bonds, Sharpe, $100,000, and Stokes, $50,000.

After the announcement by U.S. Attorney Strom Thurmond Jr., Gov. Mark Sanford temporarily suspended Sharpe from his post.

"Given the tremendously grave nature of these charges and the serious abuses of public trust alleged in this indictment, sadly I'm left with no choice but to suspend Commissioner Sharpe immediately," Sanford said. "We'll be making a decision regarding an interim appointment to this office as soon as possible."

The South Carolina Constitution grants the governor power to suspend state, county or city officials indicted for crimes of "moral turpitude," generally understood to mean crimes that involve acts of fraud, deception or other immoral conduct.

If convicted, Sharpe will lose his post permanently and Sanford will appoint a new commissioner.

One of Sharpe's attorneys, Jim Griffin of Columbia, said his client wouldn't talk to the press but added, "He denies the allegations, and we look forward to our day in court."

Griffin said Sharpe did nothing illegal and doesn't condone cockfighting. "It was represented to him that this was a legitimate and legal operation," Griffin said. "He was told they were not cockfighting, and he believed they were not cockfighting."

The case against Sharpe is the result of a two-year undercover investigation conducted by agents from the FBI, SLED, the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations and the Aiken County Sheriff's Office.

According to the indictments, investigators discovered that several members of the South Carolina Gamefowl Management Association and their associates ran a facility in Aiken County where they engaged in cockfighting. Originally called The Testing Facility, the business later changed its name to The Carolina Club.

Federal prosecutors allege that in September and December 2002, the association paid Sharpe to intercede on the group's behalf with local law enforcement. The indictment also accuses him of multiple acts of money laundering.

Prosecutors said Sharpe lied to Aiken Sheriff Michael Hunt in the spring of 2003, assuring him that activities at The Testing Facility were legal. Hunt became suspicious and approached SLED and the FBI.

The Aiken County arena was shut down in November, and more than 100 people were charged with participating in a cockfight.

A Republican, Sharpe served in the S.C. House of Representatives from 1985 until 2002, chairing the Agriculture Committee. In 2002, he won election as agriculture commissioner, narrowly defeating Democrat John Long with about 51 percent of the vote. The state Republican Party had no comment on the arrest.

On Thursday, Speaker of the House David Wilkins, R-Greenville, said he was troubled to learn of the charges.

"If these allegations are indeed proven true, it is a sad day for the citizens of South Carolina, who demand and deserve the highest ethical standards from their public officials," he said. "I have every confidence that justice will be served in this matter and time will reveal the entire truth. Charlie Sharpe was a member of the House for many years, and my thoughts right now are with his family."

As commissioner of agriculture, Sharpe, of Wagener in rural eastern Aiken County, holds one of the state's lower-profile elective offices. He has, however, helped shape state policy and management for billions of dollars in crops, poultry, dairy and livestock. The post pays $92,007 a year.

Betsy Pickle, executive director of the Humane Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Columbia, said she wasn't surprised that someone in power who grew up in South Carolina's rural society would be part of cockfighting.

"It doesn't surprise me that a person who is supposed to be protective of animals is involved," she said. "There are too many people that have been brought up with the idea that this isn't necessarily something that is bad. It's just good ol' boy."

The Humane Society of the United States called on Sharpe to resign, calling cockfighting "gruesome and barbaric."

"Any official who helps cockfighters play their cruel practice is working against the general interest of the citizens they are sworn to protect," said society President Wayne Pacelle.

For law enforcement, cockfighting is much more difficult to prosecute in South Carolina than dogfighting. The state law that allows authorities to go after dogfighters specifically exempts fowl. An 1887 state law makes cockfighting a misdemeanor, carrying a $100 fine or 30 days in jail, but it doesn't make it illegal to breed them for fighting.

Dogfighting is a felony and carries a $5,000 fine or five years in prison. While the state statute allows authorities to prosecute based on evidence of dogfighting, the cockfighting law requires that fighters be caught in the act.

In March, Attorney General Henry McMaster started the S.C. Dog Fighting Task Force. The task force is dealing with nine cases of dogfighting but has yet to take aim at cockfighting.

"Right now, we have our hands full stopping this dogfighting business, but it won't be long before we go after these other guys," McMaster said.

Cockfighting has been around in South Carolina for centuries and is so ingrained in the state that a gamecock is the symbol of the University of South Carolina.

The state is also home to Grit and Steel magazine, based in Gaffney, which calls itself "The World's Foremost Game Fowl Journal." It's been around since 1899 and claims a circulation of 5,000.

Editor Joe Skinner said the magazine follows cockfighting issues such as health care, breeding and feeding.

Skinner, who was unaware of Sharpe's arrest, added, "God gave us dominion over these animals."

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