JACKSON, Miss. — Firms run by a former skilled wrestler obtained “sham contracts” in Mississippi and misspent tens of millions of {dollars} of welfare cash that was supposed to assist a few of the neediest individuals within the U.S., in accordance with a brand new federal indictment.
The indictment of former wrestler Ted “Teddy” DiBiase Jr., 40, of Madison, Mississippi, was unsealed Thursday, two days after it was issued by a grand jury in Jackson. Throughout a quick courtroom look Thursday, he pleaded not responsible.
“Jesus loves you, brother. God bless you, man,” DiBiase instructed a WAPT-TV reporter outdoors the federal courthouse.
The indictment is the most recent growth in a sprawling Mississippi corruption case involving rich and well-connected individuals receiving contracts from the state Division of Human Providers from 2016 to 2019.
DiBiase was a WWE wrestler within the 2000s and 2010s. The indictment accuses him and coconspirators, together with former Mississippi Division of Human Providers director John Davis, of fraudulently acquiring federal cash and utilizing it for their very own profit.
In line with the indictment, Davis directed funds from The Emergency Meals Help Program (TEFAP) and the Short-term Help for Needy Households (TANF) program to 2 nonprofit organizations — Household Useful resource Middle of North Mississippi Inc., directed by Christi Webb, and Mississippi Group Schooling Middle, directed by Nancy New. Webb and New have each pleaded responsible within the welfare fraud scandal.
Davis instructed Webb and New to award contracts in 2017 and 2018 to DiBiase’s corporations, Priceless Ventures LLC and Familiae Orientem LLC, for social companies that the businesses didn’t present, the indictment mentioned.
“DiBiase allegedly used these federal funds to purchase a automobile and a ship, and for the down cost on the acquisition of a home, amongst different expenditures,” the Justice Division mentioned in a information launch Thursday.
DiBiase’s lawyer, Scott Gilbert, mentioned in assertion that Thursday was an excellent day for his consumer.
“After being compelled to sit down quietly for practically three years whereas opportunists took unabated swings at Teddy and his household, Teddy now has the chance to battle again publicly,” Gilbert mentioned. “As a lot as each one among us have the fitting to resolve for ourselves whether or not our authorities is efficient or prudent in the best way it carries out its features, criminalizing what, in hindsight, could also be pretty characterised as poor fiscal administration by the chief department of state authorities is a harmful and worrisome precedent.”
DiBiase is charged with one depend of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and to commit theft regarding packages receiving federal funds, six counts of wire fraud, two counts of theft regarding packages receiving federal funds and 4 counts of cash laundering.
If convicted, he would withstand 5 years in jail for the conspiracy depend, as much as 20 years for every wire fraud depend and as much as 10 years for every depend of theft regarding packages receiving federal funds and for every depend of cash laundering, the Justice Division mentioned.
Davis pleaded responsible final 12 months to prices tied to welfare misspending in state’s largest public corruption case, together with $160,000 spent on drug rehabilitation in Malibu, California, for former professional wrestler Brett DiBiase, the brother of Teddy DiBiase.
Brett DiBiase has pleaded responsible to state and federal prices tied to the case.
The welfare misspending scandal has ensnared high-profile figures, together with retired NFL quarterback Brett Favre, who just isn’t dealing with legal prices however is amongst greater than three dozen defendants in a civil lawsuit that the present Human Providers director filed final 12 months to attempt to get better a few of the welfare cash wasted whereas Davis was in cost.
Teddy DiBiase, Brett DiBiase and their father, former professional wrestler Ted DiBiase Sr. are additionally defendants within the civil lawsuit. Ted DiBiase Sr. was often known as the “The Million Greenback Man” whereas wrestling. He’s a Christian evangelist and motivational speaker, and he ran Coronary heart of David Ministries Inc., which obtained $1.7 million in welfare grant cash in 2017 and 2018 for mentorship, advertising and marketing and different companies, in accordance with the lawsuit.
Mississippi has ranked among the many poorest states within the U.S. for many years, however solely a fraction of its federal welfare cash has been going towards direct assist to households. As a substitute, the Mississippi Division of Human Providers allowed well-connected individuals to use up tens of tens of millions of welfare {dollars} from 2016 to 2019, in accordance with the state auditor and state and federal prosecutors.
Short-term Help for Needy Households cash helped pay for pet tasks of the rich, together with $5 million for a volleyball enviornment that Favre supported at his alma mater, the College of Southern Mississippi, Mississippi Auditor Shad White mentioned. Favre’s daughter performed volleyball on the college beginning in 2017.