A Black Lives Matter activist who received the title of “Bostonian of the Year” in 2020 was indicted for allegedly stealing funds from a charity for personal use.
Monica Cannon-Grant and her husband Clark Grant allegedly conspired to use the charity Violence in Boston as a personal bank account, Just the News reports. The couple was indicted on charges of stealing donations that were supposed to go towards purchasing meals for poor children, helping at-risk young men and other ventures.
“With this larger influx of VIB funds, Cannon-Grant and Clark Grant began to help themselves to greater amounts from the VIB Bank Account,” prosecutors said. They argued that beginning in October 2020, Cannon-Grant began paying herself $2,788 a week from the charity funds.
The couple is facing a combined 13 counts of wire fraud, each of which carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. They were also charged with lying on a mortgage application.
Additionally, the couple is accused of illegally obtaining more than $100,000 in COVID-19 unemployment assistance.
As reported by the New York Post, during that time, Cannon grant raked in more than $27,000 in consulting fees for assisting an unidentified media company with “diversity, equity and inclusion” training and later paid herself a $2,788 weekly salary from Violence in Boston. Her husband had a full-time job with a commuter services company, according to the indictment.
In March 2021, Cannon-Grant allegedly texted her husband, “Unemployment caught my a**! Asked me to provide documents by June unless I’ll have to pay it all back.”
Cannon-Grant allegedly paid her rent with charity money and often made withdrawals from the charity’s bank account to avoid leaving a paper trail.