JACKSON, Miss. – Today State Auditor Shad White announced Tony Macon, a former employee of Scott County, has been convicted of embezzlement in Scott County Circuit Court. The case was prosecuted by District Attorney Steven Kilgore in Judge Mark Duncan’s courtroom. The guilty plea and sentencing were recorded yesterday.

Macon was arrested by Special Agents from the State Auditor’s office in December 2020. He embezzled nearly $50,000 from Scott County taxpayers by using Fuelman Cards to purchase fuel for his own use. He was also issued a demand letter upon arrest.

Judge Duncan sentenced Macon to spend 5 years in prison and 5 years in a post-release supervision program. Macon was also ordered to pay $59,916.67 in restitution and fines.

“We have a zero-tolerance policy for theft in the Auditor’s Office, and people need to know there are serious consequences for embezzlement in Mississippi,” said Auditor White. “I am thankful to the investigators and prosecutors for their hard work.”

Tony Macon is now convicted of a felony offense and will not be able to handle public money again. Judge Duncan’s sentencing order has been filed with the Scott County Circuit Clerk’s office for public inspection.

Suspected fraud can be reported to the Auditor’s office online any time by clicking the red button at www.osa.ms.gov or via telephone during normal business hours at 1-(800)-321-1275

The post Tony Macon is Guilty of Embezzlement appeared first on Mississippi Office of the State Auditor News.

Sudie Jones-Teague arrested, issued demand for nearly $150,000

JACKSON, Miss. – Today State Auditor Shad White announced Special Agents from his office have arrested Sudie Jones-Teague after she was indicted on multiple charges by a Hinds County grand jury. Special Agents also delivered a demand letter to her showing she owes nearly $150,000 back to Hinds County taxpayers. The demand amount includes interest and investigative expenses. This arrest is part of a larger alleged scheme also involving Hinds County Election Commissioner Toni Johnson and businessman Cedric Cornelius, who were both arrested by Special Agents from the State Auditor’s office last week.

“We are committed to putting a stop to fraud like this,” said Auditor White. “If you have information on this case or any others, please call the Auditor’s office at 1-800-321-1275.”

Sudie Jones-Teague was arrested for fraud, conspiracy, and bribery. She is accused of working with both Cedric Cornelius and Toni Johnson to have New Beginnings—her own company—illegitimately approved as a vendor for Hinds County and paid without actually performing work. New Beginnings is registered as a “hair and fashion” company but was paid to perform cleaning and catering services. A demand letter delivered to Jones-Teague upon her arrest shows she owes $143,459.32 to Hinds County taxpayers.

Jones-Teague surrendered herself to Special Agents at the Hinds County Detention Center in Raymond earlier today. The court is responsible for setting a bail amount.

If convicted on all counts, Jones-Teague will face many years in prison and thousands of dollars in fines. All persons arrested by the Mississippi Office of the State Auditor are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The case will be prosecuted by the office of Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens.

No surety bond covers any of Jones-Teague’s alleged crimes. Surety bonds are similar to insurance designed to protect taxpayers from corruption. She will remain liable for the full amount of the demand in addition to criminal proceedings.

Special Agents from the Mississippi Office of the State Auditor arrested Toni Johnson and Cedric Cornelius last week after both were indicted for fraud, embezzlement, and bribery. Johnson allegedly used her position as a member of the Hinds County Election Commission (HCEC) to embezzle two 85-inch televisions and personal protective equipment (PPE). Cornelius is accused of working with Toni Johnson to have his company paid for cleaning services, COVID-19 testing, and voting machine audits although no work was actually performed. Johnson’s demand letter shows she owes $25,893.8 back to taxpayers. Cornelius was issued a $216,227.28 demand letter. These amounts also include interest and investigative expenses.

A portion of the over $325,000 allegedly obtained by these three individuals came from $1.9 million in grants awarded to Hinds County by the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL)—a nonprofit organization funded by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. This organization gave over $350 million to election offices across the country during the 2020 election season according to the Wall Street Journal.

Suspected fraud can be reported to the Auditor’s office online any time by clicking the red button at www.osa.ms.gov or via telephone during normal business hours at 1-(800)-321-1275.

The post Third Person Arrested in Hinds County Election Commission Scandal appeared first on Mississippi Office of the State Auditor News.

Election commissioner, business owner accused of embezzling over $200,000

JACKSON, Miss. – Today State Auditor Shad White announced Special Agents from his office have arrested Hinds County Election Commissioner Toni Johnson and Hinds County resident Cedric Cornelius after both were indicted on multiple charges. Special Agents also delivered demand letters to them showing they collectively owe nearly $250,000 back to Hinds County taxpayers.

“My office will always enforce the law, regardless of who the perpetrators are,” said Auditor White. “I want to thank the dedicated investigators and prosecutors whose work got us here.”

Johnson is accused of fraud, embezzlement, and accepting a bribe. She allegedly used her position as a member of the Hinds County Election Commission (HCEC) to purchase two 85-inch televisions and personal protective equipment (PPE), which she purportedly had delivered to her own home and one other private residence. To conceal this scheme, she allegedly purchased smaller, less expensive televisions as “replacements” for the larger televisions purchased by HCEC. Johnson’s demand letter shows she owes $25,893.8 back to taxpayers, which includes interest and investigative costs added to the $16,000 cost of the property HCEC purchased.

Cornelius has been also indicted for conspiracy, bribery, and fraud. He allegedly used his company—Apogee Group II, LLC—to work with Toni Johnson to be paid without work being performed. The company was awarded contracts to perform cleaning services, COVID-19 testing, and voting machine audits for HCEC despite being registered as a “motion picture and video production” company. A $216,227.28 demand letter was issued to Cornelius when he was arrested.

A portion of the money allegedly obtained by these individuals came from $1.9 million in grants awarded to Hinds County by the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL)—a nonprofit organization funded by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. This organization gave over $350 million to election offices across the country during the 2020 election season according to the Wall Street Journal.

“These cases expose some of the dangers of private funding of our elections,” said Auditor White. “They also represent another chapter in the story of fraud that has resulted from the massive amount of COVID-related spending in the last two years.”

Both individuals were arrested this morning and transported to the Hinds County Detention Center in Raymond. The Hinds County Sheriff’s Office and Clinton Police Department assisted with the arrest. The court is responsible for setting a bail amount.

If convicted, the defendants face many years in prison and thousands of dollars in fines. All persons arrested by the Mississippi Office of the State Auditor are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The case will be prosecuted by the office of Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens.

“The Hinds County District Attorney’s Office looks forward to working with the State Auditor Shad White and his dedicated team to end public corruption in Mississippi,” said District Attorney Owens. “The misuse of government funds designed to aid the citizens of Hinds County will not be tolerated by our office and those who break the law will be prosecuted.”

No surety bond covers either of the defendants or their alleged crimes. Surety bonds are similar to insurance designed to protect taxpayers from corruption. Both Johnson and Cornelius will remain liable for the full amount of the demand in addition to criminal proceedings.

Suspected fraud can be reported to the Auditor’s office online any time by clicking the red button at www.osa.ms.gov or via telephone during normal business hours at 1-(800)-321-1275.

The post Duo Arrested for Fraud, Embezzlement Conspiracy at Hinds County Election Commission appeared first on Mississippi Office of the State Auditor News.

The State Auditor’s office will be recognizing state and local government offices and school districts for improving efficiency and innovation through the new Public Innovations & Efficiencies (PIE) Award. Please follow the link below to complete the Google Form and submit it online.

The program is simple. You tell us about a money-saving practice and how it has benefitted your office and constituents. These measures can be a practice as simple as changing to more energy-efficient lighting to save energy, implementing “paperless” practices when appropriate to reduce paper and printing costs, or eliminating fleet vehicles to save on maintenance costs.  

We’d like to hear what practice is working for your office. If your idea is among the best we hear, you will be publicly honored in our PIE Contest.    

We are extending the application deadline to March 30 and announcing the winners in April. 

Please contact Kelley Ryan at [email protected] with any questions. We look forward to hearing from you!

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