Charlotte Metropolis Councilmember Arrested For Fraudulent PPP Mortgage

[ad_1] by Cedric 'BIG CED' Thornton Might 23, 2025

Tiawana Brown was arrested, alongside together with her daughters, Tijema Brown and Antionette Rouse and are dealing with a most sentence of 40 years if convicted of wire fraud conspiracy and wire fraud

Fees have been filed towards three ladies, together with Charlotte Metropolis Councilmember Tiawana Brown, who had been accused of falsely acquiring COVID-19 aid funds and utilizing among the cash to throw a lavish celebration for one of many alleged perpetrators.

The U.S. Lawyer’s Workplace of the Western District of North Carolina introduced {that a} federal grand jury in Charlotte has indicted Brown, 53, and her daughters, Tijema Brown, 30, and Antionette Rouse, 33, who all reside in Charlotte. They had been every charged with wire fraud conspiracy and wire fraud for submitting fraudulent functions whereas submitting for COVID-19 aid funds.

United States District Lawyer Russ Ferguson made the announcement.

The three ladies are accused of defrauding the Small Enterprise Administration’s (SBA) Financial Damage Catastrophe Mortgage (EIDL) program and the Paycheck Safety Program (PPP) provided to companies affected by the consequences of closing down through the pandemic. They allegedly dedicated the acts between April 2020 and September 2021 after they utilized for the COVID pandemic aid funds for his or her companies. They submitted mortgage functions that had false info and/or false documentation.

The ladies allegedly submitted no less than 15 functions for EIDL or PPP funds and obtained no less than $124,165 primarily based on what was provided on the functions. As an alternative of utilizing the funds for enterprise functions, they're accused of depositing the cash into financial institution accounts that had been managed by the defendants. The three ladies allegedly used the cash obtained on private bills, together with allegedly spending about $15,000 on a celebration for Tiawana.

#NEW: simply received our palms on the indictment

In it, the feds say Brown paid $15,000 on a celebration for herself utilizing the Magnificence After The Bars (her non-profit) checking account, which contained the PPP mortgage funds.

It included a horse-drawn carriage and extra. @JoeBrunoWSOC9 pic.twitter.com/CF53yL85As

— Hunter Sáenz (@Hunt_Saenz) Might 22, 2025

If convicted, they're dealing with a most sentence of 20 years in jail for every cost.

In response to WSOC, Tiawana is a Charlotte Metropolis Councilmember who represents District 3 and has been serving on the council since being elected in 2023. She was the primary previously incarcerated individual to be elected to the Charlotte Metropolis Council. She beforehand served 4 years in jail on federal fraud prices.

All three ladies had been launched on $25,000 unsecured bonds.

Tiawana launched an announcement concerning the alleged crimes:

“I need to be clear: these allegations concern actions that came about earlier than I took workplace,” Brown mentioned. “I've all the time been clear about my previous and have labored tirelessly to serve my group with integrity and dedication.”