Rep. Corrine Brown, chief of staff charged with conspiracy, fraud

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown, D-Fla., and her chief of staff were charged Friday in federal court in Jacksonville.

Brown, 69, and her chief of staff, Elias “Ronnie” Simmons, 50, of Laurel, Maryland, were charged Friday in connection with their roles in a conspiracy and fraud scheme involving a fraudulent education charity, authorities said.

Brown and Simmons face 24 charges of participating in a conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, multiple counts of mail and wire fraud, concealing material facts on required financial disclosure forms, theft of government property, obstruction of the due administration of internal revenue laws and filing false tax returns.

Brown faces 23 charges and Simmons faces 18 charges.

Among the accusations:

• The charity, One Door for Education received $800,000 in donations.
• Only two scholarships totaling $1,200 from One Door for Education were distributed.
• Funds were withdrawn from ATMs near the home of the president of One Door, and the cash was directly deposited into Brown's personal bank accounts for personal use.
• Some of the money went to luxury vacations in the Bahamas, Los Angeles and Miami Beach, a luxury box at a Beyonce concert in Washington, D.C., and a luxury box at a Jaguars vs. Redskins game in Washington.
• Brown used her official congressional seal on a flier for a golf tournament at TPC Sawgrass.
• Simmons used his official position to arrange for a relative to be paid hundreds of thousands of dollars as a U.S. House employee. The relative performed little or no work as a "staff assistant."
• Simmons and Brown provided false information to a certified public accountant about donations to two local churches.

Brown and Simmons are expected to make their initial appearances in Jacksonville before United States Magistrate Judge James R. Klindt at 1:00 p.m. Friday.

Action News Jax previously reported that the House of Representatives launched an investigation into Brown earlier this year after claims of corruption.

"Congresswoman Brown and her chief of staff are alleged to have used the Congresswoman's official position to solicit over $800,000 in donations to a supposed charitable organization, only to use that organization as a personal slush fund," said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell. "Corruption erodes the public's trust in our entire system of representative government. One of the department's most important responsibilities is to root out corruption at all levels of government and to bring wrongdoers to justice."

Conspiracy & Fraud Scheme involving One Door for Education

The indictment reports that Brown and Simmons between 2012 and early 2016 participated in a conspiracy and fraud scheme involving One Door for Education. The indictment alleges that Brown and Simmons solicited donations from individuals and corporate entities that Brown knew by virtue of her position in the U.S. House of Representatives, many of whom the defendants led to believe that One Door was a properly-registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, when it was actually not registered.

Brown and Simmons are accused of soliciting more than $800,000 in charitable donations based on false representations that the donations would be used for college scholarships, school computer drives and more. The indictment said One Door was associated with only two scholarships totaling $1,200 despite having raised more than $800,000.

The indictment said that Brown, Simmons and One Door's president, Carla Wiley, used the donations for their professional and personal benefits. They are accused of using more than $200,000 funds to host events by Brown or held in her honor, including a golf tournament in Ponte Vedra Beach, receptions during an annual conference in Washington, D.C., and luxury box during a Beyonce concert in Washington, D.C., and during a Redskins vs. Jaguars game in the Washington, D.C.

Wiley pleaded guilty for her involvement in the scheme on March 3.

The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics released a statement:

"CREW has long questioned the relationship between Rep. Brown and One Door. The indictments of Brown and her Chief of Staff, if proven, are part of a disturbing trend of lawmakers using their office to benefit themselves, friends and family. While it is disheartening to see a member of Congress accused of such serious crimes, we applaud the Justice Department for continuing to build on the indictments of Sen. Menendez and Rep. Fattah to establish a pattern of more aggressively enforcing corruption laws and holding public officials accountable when they abuse their office."

Brown Charged with Tax Obstruction

Charges stemming from tax obstruction against Brown stems from 2008 to 2014. She is accused of filing false returns based on her repeated failure to report income from substantial cash deposits to her personal bank accounts and her repeated deduction of inflated and fabricated charitable donations.

Brown also claimed deductions on her tax returns based on false donations made to One Door, as well as to Jacksonville area churches and non-profit organizations, authorities said.

"The defendants are alleged to have committed a multitude of criminal violations, including fraudulently receiving and using hundreds of thousands of dollars in contributions meant for a nonprofit organization for their own personal and professional benefit," said Richard Weber, Chief, IRS Criminal Investigation. "The American public expects and deserves equitable enforcement of our tax laws."

Simmons Theft of Government Property Charge

Simmons is charged with theft of government property. The allegation is based on the misuse of his position as Brown’s chief of staff to obtain congressional employment for a relative.

Simmons’ relative allegedly received approximately $735,000 in government salary payments despite performing no known work for the U.S. House of Representatives between 2001 and early 2016, according to the indictment.

Simmons is also accused of diverting over $80,000 of his relative’s government salary for his personal benefit between 2009 and late 2015. He is accused of doing so through transfers to his personal bank accounts, payments on his personal credit cards and loan payments on his boat.

Previous Coverage on Rep. Corrine Brown:

• Sources: Documents to be served to Rep. Corrine Brown
• House of Representatives to investigate Rep. Corrine Brown
• Head of charity linked to Rep. Corrine Brown pleads guilty to wire fraud
• Rep. Corrine Brown served federal subpoena

The federal criminal court docket was filed Wednesday, but was made public Friday.

“Our office is committed to ferreting out and prosecuting all forms of corruption and fraud, regardless of who the offender is,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley. “In our nation, no one is above the law.”

“Corrupt public officials undermine the integrity of our government and violate the public’s trust,” said Michelle Klimt, special agent in charge of the FBI's Jacksonville Division. “That is why public corruption is the FBI’s top criminal priority. It is incredibly disappointing that an elected official, who took an oath year after year to serve others, would exploit the needs of children and abuse the charitable hearts of constituents to advance her own personal and political agendas and deliver them with virtually nothing.”

State Sen. Audrey Gibson released a statement:

"Congresswoman Brown is the victim of circumstances wherein she trusted someone and she thought had a heart for the underserved as she does.

Lest we forget, it is the Congresswoman who is responsible for students and parents in Florida and all over the country being able to access low interest rate parent loans where these interest rates had sky-rocketed out of control.

She is responsible for the Jacksonville VA clinic. She had ensured funding that makes Jacksonville's post competitive, healthcare coverage for many who had none, and a myriad of other initiatives that have helped her current and former district.

Congresswoman Brown has devoted countless hours to her constituents while balancing legislative and personal life, in a district that had suffered from institutional neglect for years.

I look forward to her exoneration when the true facts are laid out."

Cox Media Group