Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick has been indicted after prosecutors say her family’s company received a $5 million FEMA overpayment on a 2021 COVID-19 staffing contract and that she routed the funds through multiple accounts instead of returning them. Authorities allege a substantial portion was funneled back into her 2022 House campaign and used for personal benefit, and that she and her tax preparer filed a false tax return. She faces up to 53 years in prison if convicted. The indictment follows other recent political corruption arrests and remains subject to the presumption of innocence.
Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick Indicted Over Alleged $5M FEMA Overpayment Scheme
Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick has been indicted after prosecutors say her family’s company received a $5 million FEMA overpayment on a 2021 COVID-19 staffing contract and that she routed the funds through multiple accounts instead of returning them. Authorities allege a substantial portion was funneled back into her 2022 House campaign and used for personal benefit, and that she and her tax preparer filed a false tax return. She faces up to 53 years in prison if convicted. The indictment follows other recent political corruption arrests and remains subject to the presumption of innocence.
08:16 AM, 11/20/2025Politics
A federal grand jury on Wednesday indicted Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-FL), accusing her of diverting a $5 million overpayment in FEMA disaster-relief funds and using a substantial portion to support her 2022 congressional campaign.
Prosecutors say Trinity Health Care Services, a family-run healthcare company connected to Cherfilus-McCormick, received a $5 million overpayment in 2021 for a COVID-19 vaccination staffing contract. Rather than return the funds, the indictment alleges, the congresswoman concealed the money's origin by routing it through multiple bank accounts and distributing portions to friends and relatives who later donated the funds back to her campaign.
Investigators further allege Cherfilus-McCormick conspired with several individuals, including her older brother, Edwin Cherfilus, to disguise and move the payments. The complaint also accuses the congresswoman and her tax preparer, David K. Spencer, of filing a false tax return that mischaracterized political spending and other personal expenses as business deductions and of inflating charitable contributions.
“Using disaster relief funds for self-enrichment is a particularly selfish, cynical crime,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said. “No one is above the law, least of all powerful people who rob taxpayers for personal gain. We will follow the facts in this case and deliver justice.”
If convicted on the charges in the indictment, Cherfilus-McCormick faces a combined sentence that could reach up to 53 years in prison. She represents a South Florida district that includes parts of West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale. Trinity Health Care Services describes itself on its website as an “innovative health organization.”
In 2022, Cherfilus-McCormick filed a $1 million defamation suit against her 2022 opponent, Dale Holness, after he publicly accused her of embezzlement; that lawsuit is currently listed as inactive. The indictment was announced roughly a week after federal authorities arrested a former chief of staff to California Gov. Gavin Newsom on unrelated charges that include allegations of moving campaign funds improperly.
The charges are allegations; Cherfilus-McCormick is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. The case underscores ongoing federal scrutiny of the misuse of disaster-relief and campaign funds.