ATLANTA – Six people, including a former state employee, have been indicted in Fulton County in connection with an alleged scheme to defraud Georgia’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program out of nearly $230,000, Attorney General Chris Carr announced.

What we know:

Prosecutors allege the defendants targeted the Georgia Department of Community Affairs’ federally funded rental relief program, which was created to help families and landlords struggling financially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Among those charged is Porsha Robinson, 37, of Jonesboro, a former DCA employee. While working for the agency from 2021 to 2022, Robinson is accused of submitting and approving nine fraudulent rental assistance applications and directing the funds into bank accounts she controlled.

Investigators allege that five of those applications were submitted in the names of her co-defendants, who then provided Robinson with substantial kickbacks. The remaining applications were allegedly filed using the names of other citizens.

The indictment was returned Jan. 30, 2026, after Carr’s White Collar and Cyber Crime Unit presented evidence to a Fulton County grand jury.

Robinson faces one count of identity fraud and nine counts of false statements and writings.

The co-defendants — Daveon Williams, 28, of Atlanta; Sean Wimbush, 32, of Atlanta; Dashon Holloman, 31, of Dallas; Miranda Payne, 36, of Atlanta; and Davier Ladmirault, 26, of Atlanta — are each charged with one count of false statements and writings.

Dig deeper:

The Fulton County indictment comes as state and federal authorities continue cracking down on alleged pandemic-related fraud across Georgia.

In a separate matter, Rep. Dexter L. Sharper, a Democrat representing District 177, has been charged federally with making false statements to obtain unemployment benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic. He is the third Democratic state lawmaker accused in recent months of improperly receiving pandemic-related funds.

Georgia lawmaker Dexter Sharper charged in pandemic unemployment fraud case

In December, Rep. Sharon Henderson was charged with theft of government funds and making false statements. Gov. Brian Kemp suspended her from office last month. Former Rep. Karen Bennett resigned before being charged and later pleaded guilty to making false statements.

RELATED STORIES

Additionally, a former senior Atlanta Housing executive Tracy Denise Jones recently pleaded guilty to three federal fraud counts for misuse of housing assistance and pandemic relief funds. She is scheduled to be sentenced in May. 

Other cases include a Hampton woman named Attallah Williams who allegedly used her roles at the Small Business Administration and IRS to bypass security checks and approve $3.5 million in fraudulent COVID-19 relief and an Atlanta man named Ian Patrick Jackson who was arrested in May for orchestrating schemes to fraudulently obtain over $3 million in pandemic relief funds. 

What’s next:

An indictment contains allegations only. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.