mdhs embezzlement scheme

We confirmed that it was John Davis who was making those approvals on the money. What is the relationship between John Davis and former wrestler and drug abuser Brett DiBiase? She received the National Press Foundations 2020 Poverty and Inequality Award. There really hadnt been the internal auditing capability, the program integrity ability before that we had at that point that was created, explained DHS Chief Communications Officer Danny Blanton. Wooten also said that its impossible to separate the discussion of Davis criminal culpability, as it relates to the narrow criminal charges against him, from the overall alleged scheme that occurred under his watch. The funds mostly came from a federal welfare grant program administered by the Mississippi Department of Human Services, and both the head of the nonprofit and the former head of the MDHS have. DHS concealed alleged fraud after welfare scandal - Mississippi Today We did reach out to Davis attorney Merrida Coxwell for comment. We moved quickly and quietly in the auditors office to put a stop to the DHS scheme before any more money was taken, and now is the time to use every investigative resource available to uncover all the fraud that remains., The story about the MDHS scandal first broke late Wednesday afternoon, Feb. 5, 2020. Any amount helps us keep producing quality journalism for Mississippi. State auditors said Mr. Davis, of Brookhaven, Miss., conspired with the administrators at a nonprofit, the Mississippi Community Education Center, and the organizations accountant to defraud taxpayers and create phony invoices. Zach New, Nancy's son, is the assistant executive director of the Mississippi Community Education Center and is also accused ofusing TANF funds for personal use as well as for investing in private medical device companies. To learn more about our cartoon syndication services. I dont care how politically connected a person may be. Brett Favre Scandal: Alleged $8 Million Welfare Scam, Explained - Forbes HINDS COUNTY, Miss. Gov. They then converted funds to their personal use and concealed the conversion through various fund transfers, fraudulent documents, at least one forged signature and deceptive accounting measures, investigators said. Newis accused of using TANF funds for her personal use as well as for investing in private medical device companies. Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. All of this is being put in place to make sure the sins of the past never recur in the future, added Blanton. According to MDHS, investigators said Lashanda Feazell, while Director of Procurement at MDHS, used the agencys credit card to pay her personal cellular phone bills in the amount of $5,741.39 during the period of August 2018 through January 2021. MDHS Embezzlement Part 1: Charges and evidence Editor's Note: This is Part 1 of a three part series NEMISS.NEWS will publish regarding the matter the state auditor has called the biggest embezzlement of public funds in Mississippi history. MDHS discusses largest embezzlement scheme in state history, upcoming Skip to content. by Anna Wolfe, Mississippi Today December 28, 2021, This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.. All six people charged are Mississippi residents, including the former W.W.E. Officials charged Davis almost two years ago with conspiracy, embezzlement or fraud by a public official and making false statements to defraud the government. The former head of the Mississippi Department of Human Services has been arrested as part of a multi-million dollar embezzlement scheme that among other things paid for a former . Newly unearthed text messages show Favre at the center of a scandal dating back to 2020, when a political appointee of the governor and nonprofit head, among others, were arrested for misusing federal welfare funds, some of which benefitted Favre personally as well as causes with which he was involved. The defendants used a variety of business entities and schemes to defraud the taxpayers, investigators said. To learn more about our cartoon syndication services. Uncovering the scheme goes back further than you may realize. Ex-Mississippi DHS head arrested in embezzlement scheme, auditor says "We look forward to this moving through the justice system to a final disposition.". Oxford University School executive director connected to DHS Blanton explained that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General had told the state agency not to interfere with its investigation and that the auditors office was already aware of the federal investigators involvement. It ends today.. She received the National Press Foundations 2020 Poverty and Inequality Award. Shad White:Transparency: Is Mississippi spending too much or not enough money on childrens programs? Here's an attempt to connect the players and what little is known thus far of the plot in this shameful drama: But when the State Auditors Office later asked state agency officials at two separate meetings in 2020 if they knew of any other potential fraud, they did not relay the report, the audit released Tuesday said. She said its unfair that State Auditor Shad White, who initially investigated the scheme, and current Mississippi Department of Human Services Director Bob Anderson are free to make comments about Davis leadership while Davis is bound by a gag order and unable to respond. On Tuesday, Hinds County Circuit Court Judge Adrienne Wooten spoke strongly in defense of a gag order in the case of former welfare director John Davis, saying that media coverage of the scandal threatens the courts ability to assemble an impartial jury. Michael Maurello, 56, worked as a payroll manager at the . Mr. Michel took orders, and millions of dollars, from a Malaysian financier who sought to gain political influence in the U.S., prosecutors said. Before joining the staff at Mississippi Today in September of 2018, Anna worked for three years at Clarion Ledger, Mississippis statewide daily newspaper. Founded in 2016 as the states first nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom, Mississippi Todays roots in Capitol coverage have grown to encompass a myriad of beats beyond politics and policy, including education, public health, justice, environment, equity, and, yes, sports. Two days after the State Auditor arrested the News, Davis, DiBiase, et al, Governor Reeves made a statement in which he said, I can tell you right now, anything they (the News) gave to the campaign is going to be moved to a separate untouched bank account., Reeves said he did not know how much of the money his campaign received was stolen from taxpayers. Purported text messages obtained by Mississippi Today show that Favre and Prevacus founder Jake Vanlandingham offered the governor and nonprofit director shares of Prevacus and offered to buy the head of MDHS a Ford F-150 Raptor truck in return for their help. If youre not able to add the byline, please include a line at the top of the story that reads: This story was originally published by Mississippi Today and include our website, You cannot republish our editorial cartoons, photographs, illustrations or graphics without specific permission (contact our managing editor. Mr. DiBiase, who comes from a professional wrestling family, did not immediately respond to an email request for comment. In doing so, we have identified concerns with Victory Sports expense reports and services. An eight-month investigation revealed that the accused conspired to illegally obtain millions in public funds from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program administered by DHS, White said. Nancy New was the owner and director of the Mississippi Community Education Center and New Learning, Inc. She also founded New Summit, a private school in Jackson. A former top state official in Mississippi pleaded guilty Thursday to state and federal charges in connection to an embezzlement scheme that auditors say misused millions of welfare dollars,. We hear from a former employee who is just one of many who were fired by Davis. "We are aware of these types of incidents. Bluff City Life. A phone number for Ms. McGrew was busy. The News also directed millions in public money to their private businesses, used the money personally, and concealed the transactions, according to the auditors. We center readers in everything we do, informingand engagingMississippians through reporting, podcasts, events and online communities. In a statement, the Department of Human Services said it had self-reported the information that initiated this investigation to the governors office in June 2019. Is there more to be revealed about the diversion of tax money to private schools? John Davis has been indicted in the largest embezzlement and fraud scheme in state history. . Special agents from the office of State Auditor Shad White have arrested John Davis, who retired after 28 years with DHS on July 31 . Anyone can read what you share. That ultimately led to (Wednesday's) arrests," DHS officials said in a statement. You and Nancy stuck your neck out for me with jake and Prevacus I know and thats going to turn out very good I believe.. (WLBT) - It was one week ago that the news broke of whats been called the largest public embezzlement case in state history. DHS went on camera with WLBT to answer questions about what happened and what theyve changed to prevent the problem from happening again. Thats to be open with how funds are distributed and who theyre going to.. Mugshots: Ex-welfare chief, wrestler, others charged in Mississippi fraud case. The cast of characters, villains and heroes, in the Mississippi Department of Human Resources (MDHS) case seems to grow by the hour. District Attorney John Weddle's office will prosecute the case. There was a reception area, a 10 x 10 room with two tables and 6 chairs and another office. On a separate visit, she said, they found no employee present. Before joining the staff at Mississippi Today in September of 2018, Anna worked for three years at Clarion Ledger, Mississippis statewide daily newspaper. Indictments were not found on the electronic courts site for Hinds County. The audit, on the other hand, said that when the auditors office pressed DHS agency officials about the fraud tip, some members of executive management still did not inform auditors of the fraud, or expressed to auditors that the fraud tip was minor and involved an incident of an employee using a business care for personal use, and of an employee sleeping on the job.. 2023, Hearst Television Inc. on behalf of WAPT-TV. Former Director of DHS and others arrested in largest public - WJTV We will continue to follow this case and update you as new developments are made available. The two nonprofits ran an anti-poverty program called Families First for Mississippi, through which most of the money that was allegedly stolen, $4.15 million, or potentially misspent, $94 million, flowed. After DHS employees reported their findings to the Governor, the State Auditor was notified and the investigation was launched. All TANF funds will go through the RFP process, Blanton said. DHS made a post on Facebook Wednesday saying it "self-reportedthe information" that led to the investigation. Their own outcome reports that they sent the state each month, which were meant to show how many people they served, contained nonsensical figures, Mississippi Today first reported. People may have identified or suspected that something was amiss but, because of the atmosphere of fear and intimidation, they were afraid to say anything for fear of losing their jobs, noted Blanton. {"requests":{"event":"https:\/\/mississippitoday.org\/wp-content\/plugins\/newspack-popups\/includes\/..\/api\/campaigns\/index.php"},"triggers":{"trackPageview":{"on":"visible","request":"event","visibilitySpec":{"selector":"#c237","visiblePercentageMin":50,"totalTimeMin":250,"continuousTimeMin":100},"extraUrlParams":{"popup_id":"id_989879","cid":"CLIENT_ID(newspack-cid)"}}}}

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