Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of Florida was indicted in federal court Wednesday for allegedly stealing millions of dollars in federal emergency funds and routing some of it to her campaign account.
The Justice Department alleges that in 2021, a year before Cherfilus-McCormick was elected to Congress, a company that she ran called Trinity Healthcare Services was overpaid $5 million on a Federal Emergency Management Agency-funded contract to assist with Florida’s coronavirus vaccination campaign.
The defendants in the case then allegedly “conspired to steal” the money by sending it through multiple bank accounts, the department said in a press release.
Some of that overpaid money was used to help fund Cherfilus-McCormick’s campaign to represent South Florida in the House, the Justice Department alleged. In particular, she was accused of funneling some of the money to friends and family members who donated it to her campaign in their own names, in what’s known as a “straw donor” scheme.
“Using disaster relief funds for self-enrichment is a particularly selfish, cynical crime,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. “No one is above the law, least of all powerful people who rob taxpayers for personal gain. We will follow the facts in this case and deliver justice.”
Cherfilus-McCormick was charged with theft of government funds, money laundering, making and receiving straw donor contributions and three conspiracy counts.
She was also charged with conspiracy to make a false and fraudulent statement on a tax return. The indictment accuses her of submitting a return to the Internal Revenue Service that reported millions in false business expenses and charitable contributions.
The congresswoman’s brother, Edwin Cherfilus — who worked with her at the health care company — was also charged with money laundering and theft of government funds. Her congressional office’s former chief of staff, Nadege Leblanc, was charged with straw donations, and her accountant, David Spencer, was charged with tax offenses.
Cherfilus-McCormick has strongly denied the charges against her, calling them “intimidation tactics” in remarks to reporters Thursday afternoon.
“This is an unjust, baseless, sham indictment — and I am innocent,” Cherfilus-McCormick said in a statement provided to CBS News early Thursday morning. “The timing alone is curious and clearly meant to distract from far more pressing national issues. From day one, I have cooperated with every lawful request, and I will continue to do so until this matter is resolved. I am deeply grateful for the support of my district, and I remain confident that the truth will prevail. I look forward to my day in court. Until then, I will continue fighting for my constituents.”
Cherfilus-McCormick’s legal team said in a statement the congresswoman “is a committed public servant, who is dedicated to her constituents. We will fight to clear her good name.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told reporters late Wednesday that he would issue a statement on the criminal charges after speaking with Cherfilus-McCormick, but added: “She’s innocent until proven guilty.”
The congresswoman’s company, Trinity Healthcare Services, was also sued by emergency officials in Florida earlier this year over an alleged multimillion-dollar overpayment.
The Florida Department of Emergency Management said it contracted with Trinity to sign people up for COVID-19 vaccines. At one point, the company was accidentally paid more than $5 million rather than $50,000 due to a “clerical error,” and the company “knowingly” processed the invoice and refused to give the money back, the lawsuit says.
In response, Trinity said in court papers that the state waited three years to inform the company about the overpayments. The company said it told the Florida Department of Emergency Management it was willing to discuss the dispute, but the agency didn’t respond.
The state dropped the case last year following mediation between the two parties.
Cherfilus-McCormick has also faced a House Ethics Committee probe, after the Office of Congressional Ethics said last year she may have “requested community project funding that would be directed to a for-profit entity.”