新墨西哥州前民主党高级议员Sheryl Williams Stapleton因联邦欺诈案被联邦陪审团定罪[1]。该案涉及她与朋友Joseph Johnson合谋，通过将公立学校资金转向Johnson旗下的公司Robotics Management Learning Systems LLC来换取回扣[1]。Williams Stapleton被控超过三十项联邦罪名，包括贿赂、邮件欺诈、洗钱和合谋欺诈联邦政府[1]，她面临最高20年联邦监禁[1]。
根据控方指控，学区在多年间向该公司支付超过300万美元，其中大部分来自联邦职业教育资金[1]。Williams Stapleton共写出约230张支票，金额合计1,152,506美元[1]。Johnson则从公司支票账户中向Williams Stapleton提供超过100万美元，时间跨度为2013年至2020年[1]。这些资金中，约73%被两名被告作为利润分割私用[1]。
Williams Stapleton于1994年首次当选议员[1]，在2021年夏季搜查令执行后两天辞职[1]。她还面临州检察官在2021年提起的其他指控[1]。Johnson也被判与Williams Stapleton相同的罪名[1]。
Sheryl Williams Stapleton, a former high-ranking Democratic legislator in New Mexico, was found guilty by a federal jury on Friday of orchestrating a fraud scheme that diverted public school funds to a private company in exchange for personal kickbacks.[1] Williams Stapleton was convicted on more than thirty federal charges, including bribery, mail fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy to defraud the federal government.[1]
The scheme involved channeling school district money to Robotics Management Learning Systems LLC, a company owned by Joseph Johnson, a close associate of Williams Stapleton.[1] School districts paid the company over $3 million, with the majority sourced from federal vocational education funds.[1] Between 2013 and 2020, Johnson funneled more than $1 million to Williams Stapleton from company accounts, while Williams Stapleton herself issued approximately 230 checks totaling $1,152,506 to the company.[1] Approximately 73 percent of the company's over $3 million in revenue became profit, which the two defendants divided for personal use.[1]
Williams Stapleton, first elected in 1994, resigned two days after a search warrant was executed in the summer of 2021.[1] Johnson was convicted on the same charges as Williams Stapleton.[1] She now faces a maximum of twenty years in federal prison and also confronts additional charges brought by state prosecutors in 2021.[1]