Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., was indicted Wednesday in connection with stealing and laundering $5 million in federal relief funds, and using the money for her congressional campaign, the Justice Department said.
In a news release citing the indictment, the Justice Department said Cherfilus-McCormick, 46, and her brother Edwin Cherfilus, 51, worked on a staffing contract funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency for Covid vaccinations tied to their family health-care company in 2021, and that the company was overpaid by $5 million in relief funds.
The congresswoman and her brother are accused of conspiring to steal the overpayment and route it through various accounts to conceal its origins. Cherfilus-McCormick allegedly used the money for her own enrichment and to fund a significant portion of her congressional campaign.
The indictment alleges Cherfilus-McCormick. 46, and her brother, Edwin Cherfilus, 51, received a $5 million overpayment in FEMA funds directed to their family health care company in connection with a contract for COVID-19 vaccination staffing in 2021.
Afterward, Cherfilus-McCormick and other co-defendants allegedly conspired to use the overpaid funds to benefit her campaign by routing it through multiple accounts to disguise its source, according to the DOJ.