A Florida Congresswoman has been charged with laundering money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. She has refuted the allegations.
It said that Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.), age 46, was employed through her family health care company on a FEMA-funded COVID-19 vaccination staffing contract in 2021. According to the DOJ, the company received a $5 million overpayment from FEMA in July 2021.
That same year, Cherfilus-McCormick ran for Congress. Per Ballotpedia, she took office in 2022. She was reelected for a third term in 2024 and her current term ends in 2027. She has declared that she will run again in 2026, Ballotpedia said.
Cherfilus-McCormick earned her bachelor of arts in political science and government from Howard University and her juris doctorate from St. Thomas University. In Congress, she is a member of the House Committee on Veteran Affairs and the House Committee on Foreign Affairs as the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa. She also chairs the Global Women’s Issues Task Force for the Democratic Women’s Caucus, is a co-chair of the Haiti Caucus, and serves as a member of the Congressional Black Caucus.
“While in office, Congresswoman Cherfilus-McCormick remains committed to tackling the growing housing crisis, inadequate access to quality health care, and lack of equitable opportunities throughout our district and country,” according to her online biography.
An indictment alleges that Cherfilus-McCormick and her brother – 51-year-old Edwin Cherfilus, also an employed through the contract – conspired to steal the $5 million overpaid by FEMA “and routed it through multiple accounts to disguise its source.” Additionally, the DOJ said prosecutors “allege that a substantial portion of the misappropriated funds was used as candidate contributions to Cherfilus-McCormick’s 2021 congressional campaign and for the personal benefit of the defendants.”
CBS News said the company, Trinity Healthcare Services, “was also sued by emergency officials in Florida earlier this year over an alleged multimillion-dollar overpayment.” That suit alleges that FEMA accidentally overpaid the company due to a clerical error and that the company refused to pay it back.
Nadege Leblanc, 46, allegedly worked with Chefilus-McCormick to make additional contributions using straw donors. The indictment alleges that they funneled “other monies from the FEMA-funded Covid-19 contract, to friends and relatives who then donated to the campaign as if using their own money.”
Further charges against Cherfilus-McCormick include conspiring to file a false federal tax return. Her 2021 tax preparer David K. Spencer is also facing that charge. They “falsely claimed political spending and other personal expenses as business deductions and inflated charitable contributions in order to reduce her tax obligations,” per the indictment, as cited by the DOJ.
“Using disaster relief funds for self-enrichment is a particularly selfish, cynical crime,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “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.”
Previously, Cherfilus-McCormick also faced an Ethics Committee probe regarding whether she requested community project funding that would be directed to a for-profit entity. It was referred to an Investigative Subcommittee.
Cherfilus-McCormick faces up to 53 years in prison if convicted on the recent charges. Her brother faces up to 35 years, Leblanc faces up to 10 years and Spencer faces up to 33 years. However, the DOJ noted that all defendants should be innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
“This is an unjust, baseless, sham indictment – and I am innocent,” Cherflius-McCormick said in a statement. “The timing alone is curious and clearly meant to distract from far more pressing national issues. From day one, I have fully 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.”