DE SOTO, Miss — A grand jury secured an indictment against former Republican Horn Lake Alderman Charles Roberts for fraud, after collecting unemployment benefits in 2020 while serving as an alderman, announced DeSoto County District Attorney Matthew Barton, in a September 11 press conference.
"If it were not for that fraud he would not have received that benefit," Barton said in the press conference.
Barton says Roberts received benefits for the "better part" of 2020, while he was receiving pay as an alderman. Being an alderman is a job that receives full time pay with benefits, and Roberts failed to disclosed that income multiple times, Barton claims. Payments were "regular and consistent," but Barton gave no details on individual payments.
"In this line of work there are few things that boil my blood more than a tax payer getting ripped off," Baton said. "Even on a good place like DeSoto County there is corruption and it is our job to shine a light on that."
Roberts is the only elected official that they have charged in a COVID unemployment benefits fraud, according to State Auditor Shad White.
Mississippi was one of multiple states that reported fraud by unemployment benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the state losing over $500,000 in these frauds, White says.
Roberts indictment will between $10,000 and $25,000, there is no minimum sentence but if convicted, Roberts faces up to five years in prison, Barton said, adding that the restitution would be equivalent to the actual loss amount to the state of Mississippi.
"I hope that this indictment is a message to anyone in government that in DeSoto County we follow the model of our state auditor and we will seek people one by one if they defraud a tax payer," said Barton.
